


Road Trip

by OverLordFluffy



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, BDSM without aftercare is abuse, Cuban Lance (Voltron), Daddy Kink, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Smut, Healing, Keith (Voltron) is from Texas, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Kuron Vlog, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Langst, M/M, Manipulation, Multi, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Shiro (Voltron) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Shiro (Voltron) Vlog, Shiro's Official Vlog, Smut, Verbal Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-10-30
Packaged: 2019-06-12 15:00:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 58,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15342369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverLordFluffy/pseuds/OverLordFluffy
Summary: Keith is Pining for Lance, and the team is getting ready to go on a Road Trip to Earth. But what happens when everyone finds out that Kuron, Shiro's clone, had been having relations with Lance and abusing him? Lots of angst. Post Season 6 canon divergence.





	1. Aftermath

Lance crossed his arms as he watched the city lights of Olkarion twinkle. In the horizon, the stars moved by slowly, and the pale light of the planet’s moons illuminated the sky. There was something about the deepness of space, like the deep of the ocean, the mystery of what was out there and yet still so much nothing. Every planet felt like an island in the vast expanse, but the shores weren't the same. Here in space, the shores were an atmosphere and the pull of a planet's gravity. He missed the way the water and the sand touch each other, the waves washing over the beach back and forth like a dance. He missed the smell of the salt in the air, and the wind's caress. The blackness of space had its merits, sure. But Lance was sure there wasn't anything quite like the beaches he once knew.

Lance was caught up in his thoughts, trying to remember the feel of soft sand beneath his feet, that he didn't hear himself sighing wistfully. He also didn't hear Keith walking up behind him.

"Ahem." Keith cleared his throat, trying to announce his presence to Lance without startling him.

Lance registered the noise and whipped around, almost in disbelief. "Oh, hey Keith." Lance's voice left his mouth feeling like a deflated version of itself, and Keith, dense as he was, noticed.

"You alright, buddy?"

"Ye-yeah. I'm fine. How's Shiro?" Every time Lance had seen Keith since he'd gotten back, no matter how many times he’d seen him in passing, the difference was still a shock. Keith had gotten taller and filled out a lot. It was different, and Lance pouted, admitting again to himself how much cooler Keith looked.

Keith was still wearing his Blade of Marmora suit, and he stood with his arms relaxed, weight shifted to one side. Lance couldn't help but smile at him.

"Shiro's fine, he's resting... What a crazy time, huh?" Keith asked, awkwardly.

Lance let out a soft chuckle through his nose. "Yeah, no kidding." Lance approached steadily, but not quickly. Keith crossed his arms. Lance stopped a few feet away from Keith, and mimicked his movement, crossing his arms in front of him, but more in a self-hug than anything else.

"So, where've you been? Tell me about all your adventures."

"I've been, you know... around."

"Around?"

"Yeah."

"You've been running around with the Blades of Marmora for months and that's all you have to say is you've been _around?_ Come on, Keith tell me about all the sick adventures!"

Lance moved to the round couch, motioning Keith to sit with him.

Keith breathed out something like a tired laugh, one that wasn't used to existing, but Lance heard it anyway. Keith uncrossed his arms, sitting down with a groan.

Lance leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "So, you found your mom."

"Yeah, I did. She's something else."

"Yeah I'd say. She's a total badass!"

"I know. She's the coolest." Keith's face held a tender smile. Lance smiled with him, bittersweetly. Keith opened his mouth to speak, but closed it, trying to find words. "You said I was gone for months?"

Lance was puzzled for a moment but answered. "Uh, yeah?"

“I've been gone for over two years."

Lance blinked. "You had mentioned that you went somewhere that the time worked... _differently_ , but-"

"Two years, Lance. I spent two years with my mom."

"Is that a good thing or...?"

"It's a crazy good thing. I just- never thought that would happen."

"That's awesome. I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks, man."

Lance nodded, and Keith sighed.

"I wasn't expecting you to be awake."

"Oh, sorry. Did you want to be alone?”

“No, that’s not it, I’m actually kind of glad you’re awake, it’s just it’s so late and you’re usually asleep by now.”

“Yeah. I've had some trouble sleeping for a while now. It's fine, though. I'm fine."

"Isn't... not getting enough sleep like, bad for your skin?"

Lance's smile widened. "Look at you, remembering what I taught you about skin care!"

Keith rolled his eyes. "How could I forget, in all of your transmissions you kept asking me about whether or not I was taking care of myself."

Lance's smile softened, and he looked down to the floor. "So, you got all of those after all."

Keith's stomach felt like it dropped at the sight of Lance's face. He looked like a hurt puppy. "Oh, yeah. While my mom and I were on the quantum abyss, we couldn't get any signal. I got the last of your messages now."

" _All_ of them?"

"Yeah... yeah."  

"A whole two years on the quantum abyss, huh?" Lance tried to change the subject, but Keith wasn’t having it.

"I mean, like If I knew you had been messaging me I would have wanted to send you back something but you know with everything, I really couldn't."

"The ones that you just got… Did you read all of those...?"

"Uh..." Lance waited for an answer, and Keith wasn't sure where to look other than the floor. "Yeah."

Lance sighed a breath of embarrassment, remembering some of the messaged he'd sent. "Well, anyway, I didn't mean any of that. It was a dare, a-a- it was a joke." Lance stuttered through his excuses, trying to find a way out of admitting that he had actually sent Keith several _I miss you_ transmissions.

"I didn't miss you at all. Totally was doing just fine without you."

Keith exhaled, leaning back in his chair, swallowing whatever hurt feelings he was getting from what Lance had just said. He knew Lance had missed him, but he wasn’t ready to say it in person. Not just yet.

"I, uh. I went to a blue planet recently... well, not _recently_ but before I met my mom."

"A blue planet? Like it had... _water_?" Lance entire posture perked up straight.

"Ye-Yeah. There were beaches." Keith chuckled at the change in Lance's demeanor.

"No way! Where? No, wait, let me guess. The Kepler System?"

"Nope! I've been to the Kepler system. No oceans. The blue planet is in a different system with a dwarf star, and the locals call the system Aradala. There's seven planets and they're all about the same size as Earth. The atmosphere is just perfect on about three of them, and they’re all inhabited by these really tall people with horns and four eyes. The blades sent me on a mission to gather information as it's still under Galran control, but it was _so_ pretty. A lot of Galran officials retire or take vacations there."

Lance ate up every word Keith gave him. It was always like interacting with another dimension listening to Keith talk, especially when he rambled a little bit. It was cute.

It took a second for Lance to realize Keith was done talking. He blinked. "You said there were beaches?"

"Yep! Although the sand wasn't white, it's mostly black volcanic sands."

"No way! I wish I could have seen it."

Keith smiled, and reached his hand over his shoulder into his cross-strap backpack, pulling out what looked like a rolled-up cloth. Keith held it up at Lance.

"What's this?"

"Just take it."

Lance took the package, and it felt heavier and harder than he was expecting. He unbound it, revealing a clear glass bottle with Galran writing on it - and black sand inside it.

Lance stared at it for a second before looking up at Keith, who sat across from him with a smirk.

"You- You got this for _me_?"

"I know it's not like the beaches you're used to, but I saw it at a gift shop and I figured this was the closest thing to-" Keith stopped short when he felt the sudden weight around him.

"Thank you so much!" Lance held Keith in a hug, and Keith froze at the contact. There was so much going on – Lance's smell, which was always so clean and fresh, and the feel of his arms. Had he always been that strong? Keith exhaled, letting his muscles relax into the embrace, and hugged him back.  

"I'm glad you like it."

"You don't know how much this means to me."

Keith wasn't sure if he heard a break in Lance's voice. Oh god, was he crying?

"Lance, you okay?" Keith broke the hug, holding Lance's shoulders a good arms distance away so he could look at his face.

'I'm fine, it's just really nice, you know?" Lance looked away, wiping his eyes.

"I didn't- I uh, I'm sorry?"

Lance laughed. "You don't need to be sorry. I'm, hah- I'm really happy."

"You are?"

Lance rolled his still wet eyes. "Yeah! You have no idea how much I miss beaches and sand."

"I should have gotten a bigger bottle then."

"No, this is fine! This is the best gift anyone's given me in such a long time I, I mean it looks and moves just like the sand from earth!"

Lance rocked the sand in the bottle back and forth, watching it fall and settle. It really did move just like it would on Earth. It was really sand.

" _Really?_ A bottle of sand is _the best gift_ you've ever gotten?"

"Well... yeah. I mean I'm just saying it's really thoughtful." Lance couldn't help but feel embarrassed. His cheeks flushed and he pouted. "What was the best gift anyone ever gave _you_?"

"A knife." Keith's quick answer made Lance snort.

"Of course, it was."

Keith noticed he had been holding Lance's shoulders for longer than acceptable. He let his hands slide off Lance’s arms, but it was already more contact than Keith really wanted to make. Keith crossed his arms again, hiding his hands as if punishing them for sliding themselves down Lance's arms. He breathed in, trying to calm down.

Lance stepped back to his spot on the couch, holding his bottle in his hands, moving it side to side watching the sand move around.

"It's so sparkly," Lance said, his eyes glued to the sight of the movement.  

"We should go together sometime."

"What?"

"To the beach. I mean, if we have time... when we get back to Earth." Keith spoke his sentence cautiously, as if somehow suggesting going to the beach would be somehow out of bounds.

"Really?" Lance smiled.

"Uh, yeah. I'm sure Hunk and Pidge will like the beach, too."  

"Oh. Uh, yeah. _Yeah,_ I'm sure it would be fun for all of us to go." Lance placed the bottle in his lap, not sure where this feeling of disappointment was coming from.

"Yeah..." Keith sighed. He took a cautious look at Lance, who was playing with his gift idly. The bags under his eyes were like a deep purple, and his skin seemed paler than he remembered. "Are you sick?" Keith blurted.

"What?" Lance was confused by the sudden question, but he answered hesitantly anyway. "I'm not, why do you ask? Do I look sick?"

"Oh, you just look... different." Keith studied Lance's face, scrutinizing it, until he could see that it made Lance uncomfortable. He directed his gaze elsewhere.

"Uhm, yeah, Coran- Coran mentioned my lack of sleep has been messing with my overall health. He gave me something to help me sleep, but it got squeezed into a crystal along with the rest of the castle."

"Have you been taking anything else? Maybe we can find you something while we're here on Oklarion."

"That's not important."

" _Lance._ "

"Yeah, yeah I know. I should take care of myself, blah blah."  

"Why haven't you?"

Lance shrugged. "I think I just like training alone, when everyone's asleep. Everyone is all busy with their stuff and I just- want to be alone where I can’t bother anyone."

“You’re not a bother.”

Lance shrugged. Keith searched for something to say. Anything.

"So, you've become a night owl, have you?"

"Mhm."  

Lance focused on the black sand, and Keith watched him. What had happened to the boy who always wanted to be where people are? What had happened to the Lance that Keith remembered? These questions swirled inside Keith, and he opened his mouth to ask him what happened, but the fear that this was somehow his fault kept him from speaking. While Keith was bonding with his mom, Lance was here, with Lotor and the false Shiro. A simple _I missed you_ would have been fine, but there were so many other things threatening to jump out of his throat that Keith shut his mouth.

Lance's eyes suddenly perked up. "Oh! That's right! I wanted to show you something!" Lance jumped up off the couch, quickly grabbing his sand bottle and the cloth it came in, then heading for the door.

"Where are you going?" Keith asked, watching Lance move about with such amusing energy.

"Come on!"

The doors slid open, and Lance looked back to Keith, beckoning him to follow. Keith chuckled, and stood from his seat.

They made their way to a mostly empty room in the Olkari palace. The area was large with a high ceiling and the walls were a light tan. There was a table, a viewing deck above, and a rack full of various Olkari weapons.

"What is this, _The Hunger Games?_ " Keith mumbled to himself.

"The Olkari made a training room like the one on the castle ship, and it's awesome!"

Keith eyed Lance's back as he slid his jacket off his shoulders. His shoulders were wider than Keith remembered, and his arms were considerably bulkier. How could someone change so much in just a few months?

"How long had you said I was gone for?"

"Like, six months I think." Lance thought for a moment, then continued. "Yeah, it's been about half a year. It felt longer because Allura was working on that ship for Lotor. Ugh, I still get sick thinking about how he manipulated everyone."

Keith bit his lip, listening to Lance talk.

Lance continued, "And Allura- she really took it hard. I mean you should have seen them together. It was _gross_. And I didn't have you to complain about it to!"

"Hah, yeah."

"And Pidge and Hunk were busy doing techy-engineering stuff so I was no help there. And what's worse, I could never catch a break because Shiro-" Lance stopped in his tracks. "I mean, I guess... It _wasn't_ actually..." Lance sighed. "Well, anyway, you've been gone for about half a year. Why'd you ask?"

Keith cleared his throat. "What was it you wanted to show me?"

Lance laid his jacket on a table next to his bottle of sand, then took up his Bayard.

"Watch me," Lance's knowing smirk kept Keith intrigued as Lance assumed a firm stance in the middle of the training floor. Hovering bots approached him from all around, firing up all at once to attack.

Lance breathed calmly and closed his eyes, his Bayard glowing white, ready to change shape. Keith watched in anticipation, normally Lance wouldn't hold his Bayard as low as he was, but when the Bayard took form, Keith's jaw dropped.

A broad sword. Lance was holding a broadsword.

Lance made swift work of the bots, dodging every blow and slicing them all with ease, several at a time, not wasting a single movement - complete efficiency.  

They fell from their spot in the air, and Lance stood in front of Keith, beaming.

"Isn't that cool?!" Lance exclaimed.

"Are you kidding? That's amazing!" Keith stepped forward, mouthing 'wow' as he looked at the red sword in front of him.

"Allura said it's an Altean Broad Sword."

Keith kept his eyes glued to the beautiful curves of the blade, twinkling with curiosity. "May I?"

"Yeah, of course. Go ahead." Lance turned the sword so that the blade faced down and the hilt was easy for Keith to grab. Keith took It carefully with his right hand and quickly held it up, holding it firmly with both hands.

"It's got _incredible_ balance."

"Yeah it's a good weight."

"This is, this is- I don't even know, man, like... _You_ unlocked this version of the Bayard?"

"You seem surprised." Lance said smugly.

Keith smiled, looking over at Lance. "I mean I knew you were talented but _damn_ , Lance."

Lance laughed. "Ye-Yeah. I, uh. Thanks." The Cuban boy rubbed the back of his neck, swaying side to side gently. "Wait, what was that? You think I'm talented?"

"You always have been." Keith held the Bayard out to Lance, his hand at the bottom of the hilt.

Lance grabbed the hilt, overlapping his fingers on Keith's hand, not allowing him to let go just yet.

"I wouldn't say it's talent. It just kind of, happened one day. I was so frustrated that I guess it just manifested. I didn't do anything." Lance slouched, his gaze looking down but not really looking at anything.

Keith's brows furrowed. " _Lance._ "

Lance hesitated, but finally met Keith's fierce eyes.

Keith pulled the hilt of the sword closer, and Lance with it so they were inches apart, Keith’s hand still under Lance’s.

Keith stared into Lance's eyes and said, "The Bayard doesn't unlock itself unless it believes you are ready for a new form, and you know that. Plus, you just destroyed those bots with some of the best technique _I've ever seen_ . That's something that doesn't just come with talent, but with hard work. If there's anything I respect most, it's the work put into a good technique. And you, Lance, you've put in the work and _it shows_. Don't try to put yourself down."

Lance swallowed, then nodded, letting a smile take over him. Keith watched the curl of his lips as they spread to reveal Lance's beautifully white teeth. Keith watched his mouth for a little too long, and suddenly realized how close he was to the current Red Paladin.

"Yeah, tell that to Shiro."

Keith didn't register the words Lance had just said. Instead, his mind was too occupied staring at Lance's mouth. He wanted to burn them into his memory. Lance's lips were closed now, instead of the smile he held just a moment ago. His lips were so pretty. Keith watched Lance gulp, and realized he hadn’t heard whatever Lance said. When Keith looked up to his eyes, he saw that Lance’s expression had changed to sheer panic. Keith stepped back, clearing his throat and looking away. Lance took the sword, releasing Keith’s gloved hand from underneath his fingers. The bayard transformed to its resting form.

Keith, now having control of his hand again, crossed his arms. That was twice now that his hand had lingered too long on Lance, although this time it wasn't entirely his fault. But Lance had to have done that on accident, right?

"I should... I should probably get some rest." Lance looked cautiously at Keith, not wanting to fully make eye contact again.

"Oh. Yeah, me too."

"Uh, Goodnight." Lance moved quickly past Keith to grab his jacket off the table, then hurried off to his room, leaving Keith alone.

"Fuck." Keith muttered to himself.

* * *

 

 

When Lance got to his room, he groaned at himself loudly, throwing his jacket on his nightstand and huffing for a minute.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Lance rubbed his hands along his face, as if he could rub off his embarrassment.

"God what is WRONG with you Lance?" Lance ran his hands through his hair and tilted his head back, fluffing up his brown hair wildly in frustration.

"Why am I so fucking stupid! One mention of the fake Shiro and he all but shuts down! I'm a FUCKING DUMBASS!" Lance paced in circles around his room. " _Yeah tell that to Shiro'_ UGH! I can't _BELIEVE_ I said that to him!"

Lance heard a squeak come from his table. Allura's mice stood together with Lance's jacket. He sighed, almost in relief. The mice were often the only beings he could talk to, even if they were mice.

"You guys- I think I made Keith mad."

* * *

 

Keith walked down the hallways of the Olkarian Palace, holding the bottle of black sand that Lance had left on the table.

"God, I'm the worst." Keith mumbled to himself. "Lance probably doesn't want to even see me. I'm such a creep." Keith looked down the hallway that led to Lance's room. "He left in such a hurry..."

Keith sighed, and looked at the deep black sand in the bottle he held. "Maybe he doesn't even want it." Keith turned about face, ready to accept that Lance probably didn’t want to see Keith again that night.

Before he could take one step, he could hear Lance yelling loudly. His words were muffled, but very definitely his voice reverberating down the corridor. Keith walked up to Lance's room and placed his ear flush up against his door.  

" _Why am I so fucking stupid! One mention of the fake Shiro and he all but shuts down! I'm a FUCKING DUMBASS!_

Keith's brows furrowed as he listened.

"' _Yeah tell that to Shiro' UGH! I can't BELIEVE I said that to him!"_

Keith could hear Lance sigh, then his voice picked up again.

" _You guys- I think I made Keith mad. I keep forgetting that Shiro- the real Shiro- wasn't the one who was there this whole time and I- I brought it up around Keith. He just- He looked at me like he wanted to kill me! Like he was going to cut me up into little pieces! What if he found out that- ugh. I just, I don't know. I wish I wasn't such a loser."_

Before he could stop himself, Keith knocked on Lance's door, and he could hear an audible gasp. He waited for a moment before Lance slowly opened the door.

"Keith?"

"Nice hair."

Lance quickly pat down his hair that had remained sticking up from when he rustled it.

"What do you want?"

"You left your best-gift-ever on the table when you ran off." Keith held up the bottle of black sand, and Lance laughed at himself a little.

"Thanks. I just got-"

"Freaked out?"

Lance frowned. "You heard all that?"

"You're not a loser, Lance. I wasn't mad at you."

"Then why'd you go all quiet?"

"Huh?"

"Why'd you like, stare at me like you were going to kill me?"

"Oh, I- uh...." Lance looked at Keith, waiting for an answer. Keith was taller now, and it only made avoiding eye contact that much harder.

"You had something in your teeth."

"Oh." Lance's mouth curled inward, hiding his lips and covering his teeth. He looked sheepish.

"Well, here's your sand. I don't hate you, Lance."

".... I don't hate you either?"  

"Cool. So, we're on the same page."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Yeah."

"I should go to bed."

"Yeah, me too... I'm beat."  

"Goodnight."

"Yeah, goodnight."

The door closed as Keith turned away to leave. Lance turned around to see the smirk-faced mice.

"Oh, shut up."

* * *

 

The next morning, the team gathered in a dining hall in the palace, where Hunk had whipped up a delicious breakfast for them all. Shiro sat at the head of the table. Keith sat to his right, and Coran sat to his left. Pidge and Hunk situated themselves next to Keith, and Lance sat next to Coran. Romelle, Krolia, and Allura were off discussing something with the Olkari leaders, and had opted to skip breakfast.

The members that were there each ate their meal, but they kept glancing at Shiro, as if to make sure he was still there. His silver hair was such a stark difference from what they were used to seeing, but more than anything his missing arm was what distracted them the most.

Shiro tried - and failed - again and again to pierce his food with his fork.

“Shiro, if you need help-” Coran began.

“Thank you. I’m fine.” Shiro smiled through his tired expression. This man had slept more than sixteen vargas and still looked utterly exhausted.

Coran nodded. “You’re right. Besides, the Olkari have told me they are getting you a new prosthetic. You’ll be back in one piece in no time!”

Shiro nodded, and finally got his fork into his food, only for it to fall off the fork right before he could get it into his mouth. He grunted, but tried again.

Keith cleared his throat. “Hey, Shiro. Maybe after breakfast Lance can show you his new skills.”

“New skills?” Shiro spoke with his mouth (finally) full of food. Lance’s beamed at the sudden attention.

“Yeah! I have to show you. Actually- have I shown anyone other than Allura?”

“Shown us what?” Pidge asked, before taking a sip of her glass of milk, courtesy of Kaltenecker.

“The bayard revealed another weapon to me!”

Pidge’s eyes widened. “What, and you didn’t tell us?”

“That’s so cool, Lance! What is it?” Hunk chimed in, sweet as ever.

“Allura said it’s an Altean Broadsword.”

Coran made a series of garbled noises before finally settling on words. “An Altean Broadsword?!”

“Ye-yeah.” Lance smiled. Everyone looked from Lance to Coran.

“I would most enjoy seeing it, Lance. Once we’re all done here, perhaps you could show us?”

“Yeah, of course.” Lance looked over to Keith, who had a tiny smile on his face. Lance laughed through his nose a little. He’d have to thank Keith later.

* * *

 

The team gathered in the training room as Lance readied himself, and the bayard took form. Coran all but squealed as the bots approached, and Lance breathed, trying to ignore the pressure of everyone watching.

“You got this, Lance.” He whispered to himself. He faced away from them, but he knew Shiro was there. As tired as he was, Shiro had made the effort to stay awake and was there to watch him.

The bots started their attack, and suddenly Lance’s focus shifted from the others who were in the room to the bots that surrounded him. They were different from the castle bots, they were smarter, and they learned from every encounter - but so did Lance. They moved in a seemingly random manner, but Lance knew it was an algorithm. He could feel the beats of their attack as if it were a song or a rhythm. His footwork was stronger because Allura taught him, and his eyes were keen because of all the practice he’d had as a sharpshooter. Everyone watched on as Lance made his moves. It was over before anyone could blink, even if it felt like an eternity. Lance relaxed, and turned to face his friends.

“That was so totally awesome, Lance!” Hunk cheered.

“Not bad.” Pidge smirked.

Lance chuckled at her half-assed compliment, but he could tell she was pretty blown away.

Coran approached Lance. “May I see it?”

Lance handed the broadsword over to Coran, who took it up carefully, as one would hold a infant. He smiled, looking at the blade’s edge.

“Incredible. It really is an Altean Broadsword. I’ve- It’s been so long since I’ve seen one.”

Lance could see a glimpse of wonder in Coran’s eyes.

A figure approached Lance from his peripheral, and Lance turned to see Shiro slowly moving over to him.

“Hey, Shiro. Sorry to make you come all the way over here just to watch me. I know you’re tired and all and that you really should be resting but I guess I just got excited and-”

Shiro placed his hand on Lance’s shoulder, and Lance quit his rambling at once.

“I’m more than happy to be here. You’ve grown so much.”

The pit in Lance’s chest hurt as he tried to hold everything back. He breathed in sharply, then let it out slow. He cleared his throat before he could look at Shiro again. The _real_ Shiro.

“Ye-yeah. You…” Lance frowned, looking away again. How could he face Shiro now? After all, he’d been dead this whole time, and in the astral plane Shiro had tried to warn him, but Lance felt like he didn’t do anything. And what’s worse - Lance had bonded with Shiro's clone - probably more than he should have.

“I what?” Shiro’s voice was gentle.

_You died and I didn’t even know it._

Lance breathed out, laughing.

“Nothing, thanks for coming out here.” Lance shrugged off Shiro’s touch and took a step away. Keith watched the exchange from a distance, still leaning against the table with his arms crossed while everyone else surrounded Lance.

“This is so cool!” Hunk held the sword, making sound effects as he swung it around.

“Be careful!” Coran yelped.

“My turn!” Pidge grinned, reaching out to grab the sword from Hunk.

“Okay, but be careful.”

“Oof,” Pidge caught the sword, but was surprised by the weight of it. “What the heck, Lance? This thing weighs a ton!”

“It’s not that heavy, you’re just not used to carrying it.” Lance said, pretending to stretch, then made a point to flex. “Welcome to the gun show.”

Everyone in the room rolled their eyes. Keith laughed through his nose, quietly.

“Whatever, Lance. Here’s your stupid heavy sword.” Pidge handed the sword off to Lance, who transformed it back to its resting state.

Shiro smiled. “That makes you the only one of us to master three weapons, Lance.”

Lance blinked, trying to take to heart what Shiro just said. It was Shiro, the actual bona-fide Shiro. Shiro:undead. But Lance couldn’t help but keep his feelings guarded. He smiled something like a half smile. “Yeah. Guess it does. It’s not that big of a deal, though, I mean like you all were busy doing really important stuff so I just worked at this during my spare time and honestly given the chance I’m sure the rest of you would be way ahea-”

“ _Lance_.” Keith’s voice called Lance back from his rambling.

The boy with the broken smile looked up to see Keith staring back at him with, gesturing to Shiro, as if to say _just take the compliment_. Lance looked at the white-haired man among them, who looked at Lance back with kind eyes. Shiro was reaching out to Lance, in any way he could without coming too close, but there was a casm of damage between them, whether it was their fault or not. Lance cleared his throat.

“Thanks. Means a lot coming from you.” Lance’s words felt empty coming out, even if he meant it. He glanced at the ground, then back up at Shiro, who nodded.

Just then, Allura stepped in the training room.

“Paladins!” She strut towards them, and noticed Coran. “Everyone. There’s been a change of plan. I was discussing with the Olkari engineers regarding getting us to Earth, but I’m afraid they currently don’t have the means to make a hyper jump from here, and building a new teledove would take months, or longer considering we’d need to start from scratch. We did some calculations, and it would be quicker if we set out to Earth on our lions. We’d get there before we could ever finish constructing another teledove. It’ll be a long trip, but I have faith that once we get there it will be all worth it.”

Allura looked to the paladins of Voltron.

“Road trip!!” Pidge and Hunk exclaimed.

“I’m sorry, _Road_ … trip?” Allura’s confused expression said it all. “But there isn’t a road…”

“Oh, that’s just what we say when we’re going on a long trip with friends. It implies wacky adventures and rest stops in the middle of nowhere,” Hunk explained.

“Ah, I see.” Allura smiled. “Well, then. Road Trip!”

“I’ll go pack my stuff. I’ll see you guys around.” Lance headed out the door.

“Is he okay?” Hunk asked Keith as Lance left.

“I’m sure he’s fine.” Keith stepped away from the group. “Anyway, I have to pack, y’all should do the same.” Keith left the training hall, and the other Paladins looked at each other.

Hunk broke the silence. “Did Keith just say _y’all_?”

* * *

 

Keith followed Lance back to his room and knocked politely. There was a slight pause, then the door opened.

“Oh, Keith, it’s you. What’s up?”

“Just checkin’ in on you.”

Lance raised an eyebrow.

Keith sighed. “C’mon Lance. I noticed you’ve been acting different since everything calmed down.”

Lance frowned, but he let Keith into his room. Keith stepped in, and Lance gestured to a chair for him to sit while Lance sat on his bed facing him.

Lance took a deep breath, collecting his thoughts. Keith smiled at him, and he knew he could trust him. Lance huffed out his breath, “I’m just- ugh. It’s so weird, Keith. You know I’ve always looked up to Shiro... Always. This past year  - I know it was that clone- thing- or whatever it was, but it was the Shiro that’s been here, with us. That Shiro - I _bonded_ with him and he- ugh. Let’s just say things weren’t always peachy. I know that I’m supposed to be this cocky, super-confident ass kicker, but like it’s weird, okay? I, I’m not that confident. I mean we’re out here fighting for the sake of the _Universe_ . It’s not just people’s lives at stake it’s the fate of _everything._ Whole planets, whole races that we’re trying to save like that’s a lot of pressure and then when Shiro and I-” Lance stopped himself.

“Shiro’s _clone_ and you…?”

“Nothing. He would just… yell at me sometimes... and stuff. But it made me feel like my opinion wasn’t worth anything.  But it wasn’t _just_ Shiro’s clone thing, okay? It was everything. Allura off with Lotor and Hunk and Pidge working so hard because they are both so brilliant and _me_? I can wave a sword good. I can shoot a gun. I’m basically a foot soldier. I’m- I’m expendable.”

Keith blinked, his eyes bore holes into Lance as he sat there with his arms crossed.

“ _Expendable?_ You think you’re _expendable?_ ”

“Out of everyone else? Yeah.”

“Lance, that’s _the_ dumbest thing I’ve ever heard you say, and I’ve heard you flirt.”

“Shut up! It’s how I feel, okay?”

Keith leaned forward. “First of all, you’re not expendable. Lance, you’re irreplaceable. You’re literally- you’re-” Keith paused, trying to find the right words. “You’re important to the team, and you’re important to me.”

Keith’s eyes met Lance’s, and Lance stared back, searching for any hint of irony, but there weren’t any jabs, no sarcasm, just Keith telling him that he, Lance, was important.

Lance looked away, feeling his face heat up. “Yeah, I know. You’re.. You’re important to me too. I’ve just- It’s been a really, really tough year, and I haven’t had anyone to talk to other than Shiro and he wasn’t even the real Shiro.”

“You have the team, Lance. You can talk to them, too.”

“No, I don’t. Hunk has been my friend since the garrison, and Pidge is cool, but together they’re on a whole different level. They’re both so smart and they get each other but I just feel-”

“ _They’re your friends_ , Lance. You can lean on them - and Shiro.”

Lance grumbled. “My point is, Keith you are my best friend, and with you gone all the time I feel like I have nobody. I train alone, I talk to mice, I-I- get third-wheeled by _everyone_ because my relevant skills are always solely for combat. And I get treated like- well never mind. It's not their fault I feel like this but I’ve felt like I’m not needed. It would seem okay when Shiro, I mean the clone Shiro- when he had time for me it was great but mostly it was just me and _I was so alone_ , Keith. I just- I missed you. Okay? I said it- I missed you. And, I missed you because - you don’t do that thing that everyone else does where you just dismiss me all the time but since you got back it was crazy and you were busy and then the castle got crushed and now the real Shiro’s back and you’re busy nursing him back to health.”

Lance’s fast-paced words almost overwhelmed Keith, but once he stopped talking, Keith sighed and said, “I missed you too.”

“Shut up, I know you missed me, what’s not to miss?” Lance crossed his arms, and huffed.

Keith chuckled, but cleared his throat to speak seriously. “You know, you’re a pretty badass fighters, but you’re smart too, and you’re a good friend. You’re always there for us, and you always know what to say.”

Lance tilted his head. “Yeah, I’m a genius.” Lance’s self-deprecating sarcasm made Keith sigh.

“You should talk to the others about what you told me. If you feel like they’re ignoring you, let them know. I'm sure they don't mean to be that way.”

“No, if I talk to them I’ll just look whiney and attention-seeking.”

“But that’s what you need, isn’t it? Attention?”

“No.” Lance pouted.

Keith sighed. “It’s not a bad thing to need attention, Lance.”

Lance said nothing for a moment, and Keith sat patiently as the boy in front of him thought it over. Finally, he relented. “I’ll talk to them, I guess. At some point. Maybe.”

Keith raised his eyebrows at Lance.

“Fine. I’ll talk to them.”

Keith smiled. “Good.”

Lance nodded, but Keith wasn’t done with him yet.

“What about Shiro?”

“What _about_ Shiro?”

“What’s keeping you from warming up to him?”

“Nothing, we get along just fine.”

“You and Shiro never ‘got along just fine’ okay, I know he’s your idol or whatever.”

“What? Pfft. What makes you say that?”

“You literally wouldn’t let me save him alone when he crash landed on earth, and I know that you’ve always looked up to him.”

“So what? Things change.”

“Lance, just tell me what’s wrong.”

“No!”

“Why not?”

Lance, frustrated, stood up from his bed. “Because then you’ll tell him!”

Keith groaned, frustrated. “I won’t tell him.”

“Even if you don’t you’ll- you’ll do something. I don’t want you to do anything.”

“Then I won’t do anything!”

Lance stepped away from Keith and grabbed a bag, and began folding his clothes and putting them into the bag.

“What are you doing?” Keith asked, standing up from the chair.

“I’m packing. You heard Allura, we need to get ready to go. I don’t have time to go in circles with you about a problem that doesn’t exist. You should go pack, too.”

“Lance…”

Lance wrapped his jacket around himself, not bothering to look at Keith. “You’re a good friend Keith, and I appreciate that you came to check up on me, but right now I need you to leave.”

“Fine.” Keith’s voice was soft, but not deterred. He left Lance’s room, determined to fix whatever was wrong with Lance’s relationship with Shiro.

* * *

 

Shiro laid on a cold metal table, Allura by his side. Olkari doctors and medical engineers scurried about. The former black paladin exhaled heavily, and Allura could hear the wavering in his breath.

“Are you nervous?” Allura grasped Shiro’s hand and leaned in, her brows knitted with concern.

“I’ll be fine. I just-” Shiro glanced around the room. “I don’t like being on a medical table.”

“It will be over soon, but the Olkari doctors tell me it _will_ hurt. Are you certain you don’t want to be numbed?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“You can trust them.”

“I know, I know. I just- I’d rather not.”

“Alright.”

An Olkari approached Allura - the head doctor. “I must warn you, Shiro. This isn’t going to be pretty.”

“I know.” A bead of sweat dripped down the side of Shiro's head.

“There’s a good chance the Galrans used quintessence to speed up your synchronization with your previous prosthetic.”

“I know.” Shiro inhaled deeply.

Allura glanced back to Shiro, and he nodded with a squeeze to her hand. She faced the doctor once more.

“He’s ready.”

Shiro could feel the presence of four others surround the table. His heartbeat raced. Allura squeezed his hand, and he looked to her.

“Try to relax, it’ll be over soon.”

Shiro focused on Allura. He knew, logically, that he was safe - but with strangers surrounding him as he lay on the cold metal slab, his mind couldn’t help but go down the black hole of doubt. What if this had all been a cruel form of mind torture or some kind of dream? What if Allura, or any of this, wasn’t real? What if he was still dead? He focused on Allura’s face, and before he could decide on the reality of the situation, he felt the sharp sting of his nerves coming into contact with his new prosthetic.

“Argh!” Shiro yelped, and he squeezed Allura’s hand tightly, gritting his teeth through the pain.

Allura squeezed right back, her strong hand gripping firmly against his.

He closed his eyes, and it was there in the black of his mind, away from the pain that he saw memories, or at least, what he thought were memories, although he couldn’t remember where he’d seen them. He could see himself, no, a clone, laying on a table, eyes open but not awake. He could see Lance, a defeated expression on his face like he had just been yelled at. Then he could see Keith, holding off a blade threatening to kill him.

 _“Shiro, please!”_ Keith’s voice cried out.

“ _You’re my brother! I love you!”_ Keith’s voice was hoarse, pleading. Shiro realized this memory was his clone’s, when it was attacking Keith.

“Keith!” Shiro screamed with teeth still grit together. Allura squeezed his hand.

His head went in circles until the pain came back, snapping him out of his head. The stinging went down into more of a sharp tingling - as if tiny needles were poking his arm’s stub.

Shiro gasped, finally able to unclench his jaw. He felt the hands of those around him holding him down to the slab. He breathed, and relaxed, letting his head rest. The hands on his shoulders and legs lifted, but the grip holding his hand remained. He lazily opened his eyes and looked over to Allura, who stood slightly leaned forward, studying Shiro.

“Can you feel that?” The doctor's voice spoke from his right side, and Shiro turned to see the doctor with a pen against the palm of his new prosthetic. It was a light tan, similar to his skin tone, and the mechanical seams glowed a pretty magenta color. He silently wished it looked more like the black metal of Galra tech.

“A little.”

“Try to wiggle your fingers.”

Shiro’s arm stub still hurt. It wasn’t like the Galran arm that he had already gotten mostly used to - this technology was the Olkari’s. He focused his breathing, then his thoughts. _Move._

His fingers twitched.

“Come on, one more time.” The doctor encouraged.

Another deep breath. _Move._

His index finger and middle finger curled up towards his palm.

“That’s wonderful Shiro!” Allura exclaimed.

The doctor smiled. “You’re doing great, let’s see if we can get all those fingers wiggling.”

His index fingers relaxed, then he curled his pinky and ring fingers.

“There we go, slow and steady. You’re getting there.” The doctor held his breath, excited as Shiro’s progress.

Shiro’s fingers stretched, and one by one they moved back and forth.

“That’s some pretty darn good wiggling. Alright, now for the big one. Can you lift your hand?”

Shiro strained, and after a few seconds managed to lift his palm up.

“Okay, looks like you have a good connection. You’ll need to strengthen it. Now unfortunately, you all won’t be staying here to complete the _much needed_ physical therapy, so you’ll need to do this on your own while you travel. Wiggle your fingers as much as you can. Lift and stretch your arm. Once you gain some strength, maybe practice doing air punches for a while - but don’t actually punch anything yet. Your nerves are extremely sensitive right now and you’re going to need time to adjust. You’ll need to relearn everything. Approach, grasp, and release of objects are the challenges you face right now. During this road trip you need to practice picking things up and putting them down, as well as how much force you’ll need to exert. I know this is your second prosthetic, but this one is entirely different from the Galran arm you had earlier. Like I said, there’s no quintessence to help you this time, so don’t rush things. You’re going to be frustrated. Lean on your friends when you are.”

Shiro nodded.

“Yes sir.”

 

* * *

 

The Paladins and Coran gathered around the hangar near the lions.

“Did anyone grab Kaltenecker?” Lance asked.

“She’s in the Blue lion- _again_.” Allura frowned.

“Oh good. There’s more room on Blue then there is on Red. She’ll be fine there.”

“Absolutely not! I have nothing against Kaltenecker, but I refuse to ride through the Universe with _your_ cow!”

Krolia entered the hangar, and Keith’s face beamed.

“Mom!” He called out to her, and took a few steps towards her, but stopped when he saw her empty-handed. “You’re not packed?”

“I’m not going, Keith.”

“Oh.” Keith breathed out, and his shoulders sunk. “Why?”

“The war is still ongoing, and The Blades need operatives if we are to keep the fight going while Voltron is away.”

Keith could sense something like disappointment pooling up inside him. “I understand.” He exhaled slowly, trying to accept that he and his mother were still very much involved in a war.

Krolia took her son’s face in her hands and smiled. “ _I’m kidding_.”

Keith blinked. “What?”

“Of course I’m going with you! You think I’d miss this chance to go on a… what did your friends call it? Road... trip? With you and your friends? My things are already loaded in the black lion.”

Keith stared blankly. “ _What?_ ”

“I said I was kidding. I’m going with you!” Krolia stepped away from Keith.

“That’s not funny,” Keith tried to explain as his mother walked towards the black lion, leaving him there to reel.

Keith sighed, giving up. He looked around to see if anyone had seen that, and all the eyes of Voltron quickly looked away, except for Lance and Allura, who seemed to still be discussing where to put the cow.

Keith smirked as he walked over to them.

“I’ll take Kaltenecker.” Keith stood in front of them with one arm on his hip.

Lance and Allura looked over to Keith, registering what he said.

Keith crossed his arms, but he couldn’t hide his tight-lipped smile as he began speaking. “Allura doesn’t want her in Blue and there’s not a whole lot of room in Red, but the Black lion has plenty of room."

Lance squinted at Keith, trying to figure out his angle.

Allura smiled. “That sounds excellent to me!”

Keith looked at Lance. “Yeah, but since there’s Kaltenecker, me, and my mom, that doesn’t leave a whole lot of room for Shiro.”

“Allura can take him.” Lance almost shouted his suggestion.

Allura glanced at Keith, then to Shiro, who happened to be walking past, then to Lance. “I figured he’d be riding with you, Keith.”

“Oh he normally would, but with Kaltenecker-” Keith smiled at Lance, who scowled back at him.

“But you have a space wolf! I don’t trust your space wolf with Kaltenecker!”

“Then you take Shadow with you in the red lion. There’s plenty of room for her there.”

“Wha- but- No! I don’t want your stinky dog in my lion!”

“ _Your_ Lion?”

“You know what I mean!”

“Well I don’t want your stinky Space Cow in my Lion either!”

Shiro stepped forward. “Allura, if you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to ride with you.”

Keith shot shiro a glare, but Shiro shot one right back. Keith rolled his eyes and sighed, but made no further protests.

Allura’s eyes darted back and forth, trying to keep up with their nonverbal communication. She looked to Keith, who nodded.

“I have no problem with that.” She said cautiously. “And, the doctor explained Shiro’s physical therapy to me, so it’s probably for the best that he travels with me.”

“Great. Let’s go.” Lance clapped as he walked away from them.

“You’re taking Shadow.” Keith yelled to Lance.

“Fine, but you’re taking Kaltenecker.” Lance yelled back.

Once the Lions were loaded, the Paladins gathered together around Coran.

Coran held his hand on his hips and smiled.

“Princess, Paladins. Romelle, and Krolia. I’m sure the Princess will oversee your journey perfectly, as well as retrieving the castle blueprints. As you all know, Romelle and I will be staying here to oversee operations for the resistance. I only ask that you all take care of yourselves. For the time being you will not have the healing pods, or me, to help you. If you are hurt, you’ll have to heal naturally, which I’m not actually sure how that works with humans, but anyway, be careful.”

Hunk was the first to step forward and hug Coran. Followed by Lance, Pidge, Allura, Shiro, then Keith. Krolia looked on and smiled. Romelle sighed wistfully.

“Hey you, get in this.” Keith smiled at his mom, who needed no further convincing to join the hug.

“You too, Romelle.” Allura reached her arm out, inviting her fellow Altean.

“This is rather ridiculous.” Romell smiled nonetheless and joined, feeling the embrace of friends for the first time in years.

The hug ended, and the Paladins began to disperse to their Lions. Romelle stepped away to say goodbye to Allura.

Coran stopped Shiro. “Ah, Shiro. I have something for you.”

“Hm?”

Coran held out a small drive. “When we evacuated the ship, I grabbed as many data files as I could. This one was labeled ‘Shiro.’

Shiro hesitated, wanting to take the drive with his new prosthetic arm, but he forced himself to use his left arm, knowing he’d probably not be able to grab something so small.

“Thank you, Coran.”

“You can view it on this hologram projector. Here I’ll put it in your pack for you.” Coran picked up Shiro’s pack and placed a small bag in the side pocket.

“Thank you, Coran. I’ll have something to watch on this road trip.”

Coran placed his hand on Shiro’s shoulder, his lips curled inwards. “I know things haven’t been the same between you and a _certain paladin_ since the- well the real you got back. Maybe if you watch this you’ll understand why.”

Coran tapped Shiro’s shoulder, then walked away to say his goodbyes to everyone else.

Shiro looked at the tiny drive in his hand. Shiro’s name had been written on it, and it looked like Lance’s handwriting.

* * *

 

The lions departed Olkarion, with the Olkari, Coran, and Romelle waving them farewell. Keith led them in the Black Lion, his mother and Kaltenecker with him. Shiro rode with Allura in the blue lion. Lance piloted red, and Pidge and Hunk piloted their respective lions. They were in for a long trip ahead of them, but they were ready. Hunk had packed lunches and snacks for everyone, and Lance had started a rather boring game of ‘I, Spy.’ Shiro sat in the back of the black lion picking up various objects with his new arm. The Olkari doctor had provided them to him, and the small pyramid was proving to be quite the challenge.

He gruffed, feeling annoyed that he still had no real control over his right arm.

“Are you alright, Shiro?” Allura called out from her seat.

“I’m fine. I just need a break from doing this.” Shiro’s face lit up as he remembered he had that flash drive. He pulled his bag close to him and rummaged around until he found the pack that Coran gave him. It was a simple drawstring bag, making it easier for him to open with just one hand. In it was a round, opaque device that was mostly flat except for a little round bump in the middle of it, and on the side, a port and a few buttons.

Shiro placed it on the ground and struggled to get the drive in.

“Are you sure you’re alright, Shiro?” Allura called out again, hearing Shiro grunt.

Shiro picked up the device and the drive and stood up with some difficulty. He walked to the front of the lion and showed allura the device and the drive.

“Could you help me, please?”

“Certainly.” Allura smiled as she slipped the drive into the port on the side of the device, then turned it on. A blue light flickered as it started up.

“Thank you.” Shiro smiled back before stepping away from Allura’s seat. He got comfortable, sitting cross-legged on the floor of the black lion.

A hologram popped up from the device, and Shiro’s eyes widened when he saw himself- but it wasn’t him.

_Hello, I’m Shiro. I fly the Black Lion_

“Oh fuck.”

“What was that?” Allura asked from the helm. Shiro quickly pressed a button on the device, pausing it.

“N-Nothing! I- It’s nothing.”

Shiro stared back at the hologram, then dove into the drawstring bag quickly searching for any sort of headphones. He found earpieces, no doubt put there by a very thoughtful Coran. It didn't take long to sync them with the device. When he was ready, he took a deep breath. His clone had logged his memories - memories that should have been Shiro’s. He pressed play.

_“The other paladins keep reminding me that I’m the only one who hasn’t shared their memories yet. These days… I feel like I can’t trust my memories. What I do know is that these heroic men and women… and Lance”_

Shiro couldn’t help but smile. He could see his clone gesturing to something off camera, and considering the context…

“Lance filmed this.” Shiro whispered to himself.

_“...wouldn’t be on this dangerous mission if it weren’t for me. I wasn’t awake for my own rescue from the garrison, but I hear that Keith created an explosion in order to distract them while he came and got me.”_

Shiro could see his clone raise his hand to gesture off camera again.

 _“I’m getting to that part.”_ The clone chuckled.

_“Lance, very heroically, showed up and helped, along with Hunk and Pidge- who he had roped in somehow. They say they loaded me up along with them on my old bike, and then Keith proceeded to drive them off a cliff.”_

Shiro and the clone on the video sighed at the same time, remembering that little story. Shiro cleared his throat upon realizing how accurate the memories his clone had were. It made him uncomfortable, to say the least.

_“And that’s how it all started… but not one of them has ever run from the fight - they’ve run towards it. Were they the most conventional of soldiers? I mean, considering Lance's piloting skills...”_

Shiro could hear Lance’s voice.

_“But you have to admit I’m a great pilot now!”_

_“Yes, you’re a great pilot - now. But to get back to the paladins... that time we tried to literally build Voltron and Hunk didn’t want to be a leg anymore. You had to remind Hunk that he’d yelled “I’m a leg” when we first formed Voltron…”_

Shiro listened to Lance and his clone laughing together.

_“So I guess to answer my previous question: No,they were not the most conventional of soldiers... but I’m not the most conventional of leaders either. Like that time we had to do all those… weird plays at different planets with Coran as our agent.”_

Shiro’s brows furrowed. He knew he didn’t remember doing that, but he also somehow did remember it. Vaguely, fuzzily. It was impossible, since he was dead at that time, but the familiarity was too real.

_“Or that time we couldn’t decide what laser guns sound like.”_

Shiro smiled, remembering Pidge’s sound effect. Shiro’s clone sighed.

_“Each one of them would do anything they could for each other. I guess that makes them a family. And if we’re family I guess that makes me some kind of space...  uncle?”_

Shiro could see the clone peer at Lance off camera again.

_“The universe is counting on Voltron to win this war and my team is counting on me. So I will do whatever it takes to make sure they get back to Earth safely. Whatever it takes.”_

Shiro sighed, seeing his determined clone promise to protect the paladins knowing full well that after this, he attacked Keith. He frowned, but the video wasn’t over. The clone looked to the side again.

_“Cool! I’ll edit it and show you the finished version once I’m done. It’s gonna be so great.”_

_“If you say so.”_

_“Oh! And space uncle? C’mon you’re like totally space dad. Admit it.”_ Lance teased, and walked into the frame, sitting on the table in front of Shiro’s clone and leaning in close.

 _“Nope, not gonna say it.”_ The clone rested his right hand on Lance’s shoulder.

 _“Come on! Everyone looks up to you!”_ The clone’s Galra hand slid down Lance’s arm.

Shiro studied the projection, watching how his clone’s hands lingered too closely to Lance’s body. Something in him stirred.

_“No, no no, I know you, Lance. If I let you call me space dad it’s only a matter of time before someone develops a daddy kink.”_

_“I think it’s a little too late for that.”_

_“Oh? Really now?”_

Lance bit his lip, and looked up and down at the clone.

_“C’mon, let me call you daddy.” The clone’s breath shook staring at Lance._

Shiro quickly glanced to make sure Allura was still focused on piloting.

_“We’ll see. Come here.”_

Shiro watched as Lance leaned in for a kiss with his clone. He paused the video, not wanting to go any further. He glanced back over to Allura, who seemed to be chatting with Lance and Hunk through their helmets. Shiro slowly looked back to the hologram, as if he could sneak up on it, as if he could look at it slowly enough it wouldn’t be real. But there it was - there _he_ was, with Lance. Shiro sat there, in the back of the blue lion, knowing full well it would be wrong to watch Lance and his clone together. But he had to know. Just exactly _how far_ had they taken it?

Shiro took a deep breath, then pressed play.

Watching himself kiss lance felt strange at first, until he could see how hungry Lance was in his movements. It wasn’t long before Lance was straddling the other Shiro’s lap, moving obscenely - grinding down on him. The clone shiro’s hands gripped Lance’s ass, and moved him in closer. Shiro looked at his hand, realizing that his body, this borrowed vessel, was the same one his clone used to touch Lance.

Shiro fast-forwarded the video, and when it played again, Lance was naked, face down on the table, his ass in the air, getting pounded by the fake Shiro.

_“You’re an attention-seeking little whore, aren’t you, Lance?”_

Shiro’s heart nearly stopped hearing those words come out of his mouth. Lance was mewling and whining, tears in his eyes and bruises covering his back.

_“Say it, Lance. You’re an attention-seeking little whore.”_

_“I- I’m an attention- Ah! attention -seeking little who- whore.”_

The fake shiro slapped Lance’s ass, and he moaned out.

_“You like that don’t you? You like getting mistreated?”_

_“Yes!”_

_“You’ve been a good little slut. Go ahead, call me daddy.”_

_“D-addy Shiro, fuck me harder!”_

Shiro couldn't help but feel his dick outright twitch at the sound of his name getting moaned out by Lance, preceded with ‘daddy’ no less. But his arousal was intertwined with anger, as the fake Shiro slapped Lance’s ass again.

_“Did I say you could give me orders? I’m your leader, Lance. I give the orders.”_

_“Ye-yes sir!”_

_“That’s more like it. You’re not worth anything except for this. You’re a foot soldier. You’re expendable. But if you want to be a good paladin, you’ll be daddy’s little fuckhole.”_

Shiro couldn’t believe his ears. This had to be a scene. They had to just be role-playing. Shiro fumbled to fast forward the video, hoping, praying that his clone at least gave Lance some aftercare - that he didn’t talk to Lance like that in earnest.

But that’s not what Shiro found. Instead, he saw Lance getting dressed alone, wincing as he pulled on his suit. Tears still wet on his face. Shiro’s stomach turned inside him. All this time, Lance was being manipulated by the clone. Some part of him had always known, but didn’t want to admit it. Even from the astral plane, Shiro could tell that Lance was hurting, but Shiro never would have guessed that the clone had taken it this far. He wiped his tears as the Lance in the projection realized he had left the camera on. He shut the camera off, and the video ended.

* * *

 

It had been several hours since the paladins took off, but due to the lack of sunlight, it was fairly difficult to tell time.

“You guys, it’s been eight vargas. I gotta go.” Hunk’s voice hummed over the helmet radio.

“Go where?” Allura asked.

“Yeah, it’s getting close to the wire for me too. We should make a stop.” Pidge chimed in.

“The next inhabited planet isn’t at least for another four vargas.” Allura said. The other paladins and Shiro in the blue lion groaned in unison.

Lance grumbled. “Is there like a meteor or something? I just need to wizz.”

“I’m sorry Lance. Most of space is just this - space.”

“What about that,” asked Keith.

“What is that?” Hunk squinted, seeing an object floating by in the distance.

Allura gasped in excitement at the recognition “It’s a ship - a rather large one at that. Perhaps a cargo ship.”

“Is it Galran?” Keith asked.

“No, that’s an Unilu ship.” Krolia’s voice could be heard on the helmet radio.

“Unilu… why does that sound familiar?” Hunk knew it was something he’d heard before.

“SPACE MALL!” Lance exclaimed.

“That’s right, the Unilu usually have swap moons that the Galrans turned into a large trade mall. You all went to one if I remember correctly.” Allura recalled.

“But... didn’t we get banned permanently from that place?” Keith reminded them.

“Yeah we got banned from _the mall_ but that’s an Unilu _ship_. We didn’t get banned from a ship.” Lance replied.

“Do you think they’ll let us board once they see we’re voltron?” Said Hunk.

Pidge grinned. “If not, we can always offer to trade Kaltenecker”

“Don’t even joke about that!” Screamed Lance.

“We’ll go and see if they’ll let us board if not, I’m sure you all will think of something…. Perhaps a bottle?”

The paladins grumbled in unison at the thought as they moved towards the ship. It wasn’t long before Keith got a hail from the ship.

“Hault. This is First Mate Geno. Identify yourselves.” A video conference request popped up on Keith’s screen.

Keith joined the video conference, his mother at his side. The alien on their screen was Unilu.

Keith spoke firmly, addressing the call. “First Mate Geno, We are the Paladins of Voltron, and we come in peace. We’re travelling and in need of rest. We are hoping to board your ship for a rest stop.”

“You say you come in peace, then why do you bring the oppressor with you?”

“The oppressor?”

“That galra woman beside you. Is Voltron still under Lotor’s control like they say?”

“No, Voltron is no longer under the influence of Lotor. As for Krolia, she’s my-”

“I am a defector.” Krolia interrupted.

The Unilu glanced back to what Keith assumed was his Captain, who nodded.

“We’ll open the hatch for the Paladins of Voltron and their Galran _defector_.”

* * *

 

Once on the ship, the Paladins first order of business was with the toilets while Allura met with First Mate Geno in the ship’s dining hall. The Captain standing next to him was feminine-looking, tall, and wore a very elegant white caped dress that rested elegantly on all four of her toned arms.

“This is Captain Ulya.” First Mate Geno started, “She is the finest Captain in this quadrant. You’ll find no other quite like her.”

Krolia stepped into the hall, Keith and Pidge following suit.

“Enough with the flattery, Geno.” The Captain looked to Krolia. “Is it true what you say? That Lotor is no more?”

Krolia said nothing as Allura answered. “Yes, he was consumed by quintessence.” Captain Ulya turned to see Allura.

“Princess Allura, I presume? Of Altea?”

“Yes, I am King Alfor’s Daughter.”

“The very same King Alfor that created a super weapon and still could not stop the Galran Empire from conquering galaxies? That King Alfor?”

“Excuse me?” Keith said, offended on Allura’s behalf. The princess held up her hand, shushing him.

“The very same. I plan to use Volton to restore peace to the universe.”

The Captain kept her eyes fixed on Allura. “The way I see it, the resistance is doing most of the legwork. And what is _Voltron_ doing? Travelling? At a time like this?”

Allura, calm as ever, responded. “We are on a mission. But you are correct, Voltron could not have accomplished as much as we have without the uprising of the various planets which the Galra have subjugated.”

“So then, why was it that when Prince Lotor took up arms that Voltron stood beside the Galra Empire?”

Pidge had enough of the Captain's attitude. “Why are you so rude? Voltron, the Princess, everyone - the whole galaxy is working their butts off to get this universe safe. What’s your problem?””

“Pidge, have some decorum.” Allura scolded gently. Pidge took a step back, and Allura looked to the Captain. “I understand your frustration. The truth is, Lotor had infiltrated our trust, and abused it. He turned out to be just like Zarkon, and we fell right into his trap.”

“And how can people like us put our faith in someone so foolish?”

Allura breathed then stood straight, lifting her chin. “Because if the enemy succeeds in dividing us, then they have won already.”

The Captain smiled. “Princess Allura, we are but a humble cargo ship, but you have my word as the Captain of this ship that whatever you need, we will be more than happy to help you in this war against the empire.”

Allura smiled. “Thank you, Captain. But I’m certain the cargo you are carrying makes you slightly more than a humble cargo ship.”

Keith and Pidge glanced at each other, then to the Captain, who chuckled. “So you are clever. Good to know the universe is in such perceptive hands.”

“Wait- I don’t understand,” Pidge said, confusion threatening to eat her up.

Allura kept her eyes on the Captain, but answered Pidge. “This is no ordinary ship. These are pirates, and they’re carrying weapons stolen from the Galra.”

Hunk walked in as Allura spoke. “Whoa, Space Pirates?”

“What? Wait- then why were you criticizing the resistance?” Keith asked.

The Captain looked to all those in the room, one by one, speaking to them as a whole. “When we stole these weapons, we’d know there would be those who’d try to find us and take them from us. There is money to be made on a war. We’ve encountered many people looking to take these weapons to sell, not to fight. Please excuse me for coming off so cold, but we cannot trust many these days, especially Galrans claiming to be a part of the resistance. We’ve been burned once- but not again.” Captain Ulya looked to Krolia. “Forgive us for our prejudice. We do know that there are those within the Galra that do not agree with the Empire’s ways, but please understand-”

“We’re not here for weapons, as we’ve said, but we understand your caution.” Krolia answered.

“So what exactly are you here for?”

Allura stepped forward. “We are on a mission, and though it has just begun, it is proving to be quite the challenge. Namely, the paladins of Voltron are humans and have small bladders. Our first stop was meant to be for another four vargas, but I didn’t realize that would be physically asking for too much.”

“Glad we were here to help.” Captain Ulya nodded to Allura.

“Yes, thank you.”

* * *

 

Lance washed his hands in the ship’s restroom, looking at himself in the mirror. He had to admit he looked like shit. He had bags under his eyes, and his skin was really taking a beating from the lack of sleep. He sighed at the sight, not wanting to look at himself anymore. He dried his hands, and turned to leave, but the white-haired Shiro stood in his way.

“Lance, we need to talk.”

“Uh, okay… about what?”

“About… my-”

Hunk stepped back into the restroom. “Hey guys, we need to get going.”

Lance answered, “We’ll be right out.”

As the door shut, Shiro breathed. “It’s about the clone. And you.”

Lance made quick eye contact with Shiro, only to shy away soon after. “What about it?”

“He- uh, Look, I know that things haven’t been the same with you since I got back and I- I think it’s because- Well, look I didn’t know that you and my clone had… _bonded,_ and-”

“Oh my god.” Lance rolled his eyes and stormed past Shiro, leaving the restroom.

“Lance!” Shiro called out to the paladin in vain, and he followed him out of the restroom to the dining hall just in time to see him shove Keith.

“What the hell is your problem!” Keith shoved Lance back.

“I told you not to say anything to Shiro!” Lance pointed his finger in Keith’s face, and Keith swatted his hand away.

“I didn’t say anything!”

“First you try to put Shiro on my lion, Then he comes to me trying to talk to me about how I _bonded_ with his clone? I told you I didn’t want you to say or do _anything_ and then you tell him and he comes up to me and-”

“Wait,” Shiro looked at Keith angrily. “You _knew_ that my clone was fucking Lance and you didn’t say anything?”

The silence in the room was deafening as everyone looked to Shiro, then Lance, then Keith. Keith looked at Shiro like he had grown a second head, and Lance’s eyes were wide as he stood perfectly still.

Keith turned back to Lance, who stared straight at the floor. “What?”

Lance shrugged. “I don’t know what he’s talking about. I really don’t. I-”

“I saw the video, Lance.” Shiro interrupted.

Lance swallowed, then mumbled to himself. “I thought it got destroyed with the castle.”

Allura stepped forward and faced the Captain. “We’re sorry, Captain Ulya, we’ll be going now. Thank you for your hospitality.”

“No, we need to talk about this _now!_ ” Keith spoke as he kept his eyes locked on Lance, who looked off to the side into empty space.

Allura walked over to them, her expression clearly displeased. “We will talk about it once we get to the next planet and we have more time but right now, this ship is headed elsewhere. Keith, we need to leave.” Allura guided Lance away from the dining hall. Hunk and Pidge followed, trying not to stare at Keith and Shiro but instead sharing glances with each other.

Krolia placed her hand on her son’s shoulder. “We need to go, Keith.”

Keith breathed, trying to calm himself down, but he couldn’t help but feel angry somehow. He didn’t even really know why he was angry.

Krolia sighed. “Listen, if you try to discuss things with him now, you’ll only make things worse. While we’re going to the next planet, think about what you need, and what you’ll say. Okay?”

Keith nodded silently, leaving the room. Shiro followed, but not before Keith shot him a look. It wasn’t a dirty or mean glare, but more like something hurt, or curious. Shiro was certain he hadn’t seen Keith’s face look like that since he was a kid.

“Fuck.” Shiro whispered to himself.

* * *

 

The paladins loaded the lions and took off, and the radio chatter was dead silent. Shiro sat behind Allura.

“Allura, I think I-”

“Shiro, whatever happened, whatever your clone did- that wasn’t you.”

“I know, but it’s what he did is what I’m worried about. Lance is- Lance is messed up. And I feel somehow responsible.”

“Don’t beat yourself up.”

Shiro stayed silent, not wanting to answer.

Allura cleared her throat. ‘Why don’t you go to sleep? We’ll be there in about four vargas give or take.”

Shiro nodded, and layed down. It wasn’t long before he went to sleep, and soon enough he began to dream. But it wasn’t just a dream. There, in the black of his mind, he could see him. His clone.

“ _You!_ ” Shiro called out to him.

“ _Shiro, you made it._ ” The clone spoke calmly. He stood before him, his arms to his side.

“ _You abused Lance._ ” Shiro’s anger boiled up inside him.

The clone sighed. “ _I didn’t want to abuse him.”_

_“What does that mean?”_

_“The Witch. She made me do it.”_

_“Why? Why would she want that?”_

_“She wanted to use me to wear him down. Lance has a clear moral compass, a threat to Lotor’s operations at the time. If I used Lance, if I abused him, he would feel alone and like his opinions didn’t matter. I hated every second of it.”_

_“But you didn’t have to do that. You didn’t have to do what you did to him.”_

_“I fought it every chance I got, Shiro. I didn’t want to leave Lance alone. I wanted what you want."_

_“You can’t want what I want.”_

_“I’m you, Shiro. I’m you but I was under the Witch’s control. What I wanted was to care for him. I wanted to stay with him, and tell him that he meant the world to me and the team, but that’s not what the Witch wanted.”_

_“You didn’t have to fuck him!”_

_“But I did, Shiro. I had to. You know firsthand how twisted the Witch is. She wanted to make sure I left scars on him, but I couldn’t just beat him up. She wanted me to take something from him, and I couldn’t resist her control.”_

_“I would rather die than ever have to abuse any of my paladins! That boy had feelings for you- for me! And you-”_

_“I had feelings for him, too.”_

_“No!”_

_“I had feelings for him, just like you always have.”_

_“I don’t.”_

_“You deny it because you think it’s wrong.”_

_“It is wrong! I’d never do that!”_

_“You think too highly of yourself.”_

_“I know myself!”_

The clone smiled. _“Do you really know yourself?”_

_“Yes! I know that I would never abuse Lance!”_

_“But you would fuck him if he let you.”_

_“What? No, I wouldn’t. It’s-”_

_“If he consented, you would take him.”_

_“Well- that’s different.”_

_“Yes, it is different. Lance consented to getting railed every time we were together.”_

_“But you degraded him and never gave him any aftercare! He believed what you said as truth!”_

_“Yes, I know. But if I had my way, I would have cared for him. I love Lance, Shiro. I love Lance, and Keith, and the rest of the team with everything I had, but I couldn’t be who I thought I was. If you’d had the chance, you would love him and care for him the way I wanted to.”_

_“Of course I would take care of him, but you-”_

_“Then you admit you wouldn’t mind screwing him.”_

_“I-”_

_“You would fuck him, maybe not as rough as I did, but you would.”_

Shiro was silent. His clone sighed.

_“It’s all a mess. Keith likes Lance so much, too. But now that Lance is ruined, and Keith knows it, they don’t have a chance.”_

_“What? Shut up!”_

_“Lance won’t recover from this.”_

_“Yes he will!”_

_“You have such faith in him.”_

_“Because he’s resilient! He’s tough!”_

_“You only saw one measly video of what I did to him. You have no idea how much that boy is in love with you. The things I made him do, the things he said. Towards the end, he would have blindly done anything I asked. When he realized it wasn’t you that did all of that- it shattered him. Hagar knew that eventually, I’d be found out. She knew the day would come when Lance would discover that the you had been dead this whole time and it would destroy any lingering self-esteem he had.”_

_“Why would Hagar be so hellbent on bringing Lance down? I don’t see how-”_

_“You know why. Lance holds this team together more than Keith or You or Allura. He always steers the rest of you towards the right path. The rest of you depend on him.”_

_“You’re right. We do depend on him. And now, he’s going to depend on us.”_

The clone smiled. _“Good. Maybe then, he has a chance. Hagar’s plan was to force Lance to suffer alone. Don’t let him suffer alone.”_

Shiro opened his eyes, the movement of the ship rocking him awake.

“You awake, Shiro? We’re heading into the planet’s atmosphere.  Grab onto something.”

They entered the atmosphere, and the turbulence shook them as they barreled through.

* * *

 

The lions landed on top of a hill in a dry region. It was daytime where they were, even if they had just traveled for twelve vargas. They were tired, although the bustling city at the valley they faced seemed to be just starting their day.

Pidge gathered near Hunk as Allura and Shiro stepped out of the blue lion. Krolia stood near the black lion while Keith looked over the hill to the city, his arms crossed. Kaltenecker was beside him, eating the bits of grass that seemed edible. Lance was the last to leave his lion. Keith’s wolf bounced happily to Keith, and he pet him, keeping his stern expression about him.

The wind blew through the brush, and howled in the mountains to either side of the hill.

Lance stepped forward, sighing heavily. He kept his eyes on the ground. Keith turned to face him, and suddenly everyone’s eyes were on him. The eyes that were the most important to him. His team.

“You all must think… I’m disgusting.” Lance sniffled.

“No, we don’t.” Shiro spoke first. Lance looked up cautiously, and squinted his eyes to the sun.

Shiro sighed. “Lance, my clone was using you. He- You didn’t deserve to be treated like that.”

“Like what?” Keith asked.

“Keith, its-” Shiro tiled his head, but sighed. He turned to Lance. “Lance, what he did to you, it wasn’t right-”

“I consented to everything.”

“Consent isn’t the only important thing in a relationship, Lance he was abusing you!”

“Maybe I liked it that way!”

“No, Lance it wasn’t healthy and you know it!”

“How would you know what was healthy for me? You were dead, and-and Keith was gone, Allura was in love and I had no one!”

Pidge and Hunk shared a glance. Lance continued, “I was alone, Shiro. With him- with you- at least he gave me the time of day. There was nothing better for me and there never will be!”

“He _made_ you feel like you were alone, Lance! It was all part of Hagar’s plan to tear you down.”

“Why would she want to do that?”

“Because you’re irreplaceable, Lance!” Shiro said the words so easily. They were true, but Keith watched on impressed that Shiro was able to say it without hesitating, where when he tried to say it earlier, it was like he was putting everything on the line.

Lance sobbed.

Keith stepped closer. “Lance, what- what happened?”

“I-” Lance’s voice shook, and his glassy eyes spilled tears onto his face. Keith could feel his heart pounding. He needed to know what happened, but he was afraid of the answer.

“I fell in love with Shiro’s clone.. But the clone didn’t love me. Not really, he- he would say things. He would make me say things. I- I felt like it was all I had. Then I found out none of it was even real. That the real Shiro could never have those feelings for me, and I-” Lance closed his mouth and swallowed, watching the single tear roll down Keith’s face.

“I’m sorry, Keith. I know you thought of me as something different. I’m disgusting.”

“You’re not disgusting!” Keith ran up to Lance, pulling him into a hug. His voice was breaking, but he held on tight. “You’re not disgusting, Lance. So, stop saying that!”

“It’s true.”

“No! If I was here- If I had been here I could have protected you!”

Shiro stepped closer, placing his arm on Keith’s back. “Don’t blame yourself, Keith. It was Hagar. She did this.”

“But-”

“No buts. We’re not playing the blame game with each other because that’s what Hagar wants. Right now, we need to focus. We get to Earth, and we get those plans. Then when we see her, we rip her to shreds.”

Shiro’s ferocity surprised Keith. Lance nodded, keeping his eyes fixed to the ground. Keith slowly let go of Lance, realizing he’d been hugging him without any reciprocation the entire time. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed, but he backed away nonetheless.

Shiro stepped forward. ‘I’m sorry this happened to you, Lance. You’ll get through this, you have us to lean on. We’re here for you.”

Shiro placed his arm on Lance’s shoulder, not sure if Lance was ready for a hug from him, but when Lance looked at him with tears in his eyes, Shiro pulled him in close, sighing. Lance wrapped his arms around Shiro, and nuzzled his head into his shoulder, quietly sobbing.

Keith stepped back, and turned around. He didn’t want to see this. He didn’t want to see Lance clinging to Shiro. It fueled something primal in him, and he hated it. He breathed shakily, and more tears fell from his face. He was angry. Angry as all hell. He was going to tear Hagar apart bit by bit. But right now, he was just trying to hold it together. Lance loved Shiro. Of course he loved Shiro. Everyone loved Shiro, and everyone, even he, would fuck Shiro given the first chance they got, but Keith really liked Lance. He had to admit it to himself now, he liked Lance. He wanted Lance’s affection, and Lance’s time. But Lance wanted Shiro and it hurt.

Keith looked up to see his mother watching him. He sighed.

The other paladins walked over to Lance, hugging him and encouraging him. Keith sat on the ground with his wolf laying next to him and it’s head on his lap. Krolia sat to Keith’s right.

“You like him.”

Keith nodded silently.

“You should tell him.”

“He’s- he’s going through something. I would only be a nuisance coming to him with this now.”

“Maybe not right this second, but you will have to tell him how you feel.”

Keith sighed. “We have a long way to go until we reach Earth.”

“It’s okay, Keith. You have me and Shadow if you need us.”

“Thanks mom, I’m really glad you came.”

Krolia smiled. “I’m glad I came too. I’m so lucky to have a son like you.”

Keith smiled. “You’re lucky to have a son that mopes because his friend likes someone else? I’m a sore loser.”

“No, Keith, you’re a good friend. You know Lance isn’t ready now, and you’re going to be there to support him during this time. I couldn’t have asked for a better son. You have a strong way about you, and you know what’s right. I’m proud of who you’ve grown up to be.”

Keith leaned against Krolia’s shoulder. “I love you, mom.”

“I love you too, Keith. You’re going to be just fine. Everything is going to be just fine.”

 


	2. Blame Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro begins to realize that Kuron still exists in his head while Lance deals with the fact that everyone knows about what he considers as his shame. As usual, Voltron is called to defend the Universe, but The Paladins of Voltron find out that their connections with each other are damaged and must come to terms with their wrongs and work to move past them in order to help Lance, who is lost and confused about what he needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Congrats on Shiro being confirmed gay!!  
> Anyway, have some angst.

Shiro laid in his makeshift bed in the Blue lion. The lion darkened its window to block out the sun, but even if it hadn’t, Shiro’s exhaustion was stronger than his need for darkness. He drifted to sleep, knowing who’d be waiting for him in his mind.

“You.”

“You know, I have a name. It’s Shiro.”

“No, I’m Shiro. You’re not real.”

Shiro’s clone sighed. He sat on a couch in front of him, and Shiro looked around.

“Are we in Keith’s shed?”

“It’s a cozy spot.”

“Why are we here?”

“This is a familiar place. I remember it vividly, even if I’ve never set foot in it out there in the real world.” Shiro’s clone touched the couch fondly, as if reminiscing about all the times Keith had invited him over.

Shiro sat down across from his clone, his arms crossed, keeping himself guarded. “When did you know you weren’t real?”

“I am real.”

“You know what I meant.”

Shiro’s clone sighed. “I woke up, and I saw another one of myself laying on a table. I could hear one of the druids saying the words ‘Operation Kuron.’ I knew something about it wasn’t right, and my memories, they were vivid - but they didn’t feel like mine. My head would hurt, and one day Lance asked me if I was okay. I think he was starting to realize that I was acting different. Haggar must have seen it, because from then on I could feel her will guiding me. I didn’t feel like myself. I didn’t feel like what I knew myself to be. It wasn’t until Haggar spoke to me directly that I knew who was really in control. I hated doing the things I did. All I ever wanted was to be you, to be the Shiro that I knew.”

“Did you even resist?”

“With everything that happened - I don’t expect you to understand. I don’t expect you to know what that was like or to have sympathy for me.”

“Good, because I don’t.”

The clone frowned, but accepted Shiro’s words. “Could I have a name? If I’m not you- I want a name.”

“Why does that matter? You don’t exist.”

“But I do exist, Shiro. I existed to the team. We bonded. I exist in their memories, and I exist here, in you.”

“No you don’t. I can make you go away at anytime.”

“Make me go away, then.”

Shiro closed his eyes and breathed, focusing on driving his clone away. When he opened them, he was no longer in Keith’s shed. He was on the castle ship, in one of the hallways. He smiled, content with his ability to drive his clone out.

“I’m still here.”

Shiro turned around, seeing his clone behind him.

“What? How?”

“This is my body too, Shiro. It was my body before it was yours, and I will remain here.”

“Leave!”

“I can’t. Even if I wanted to. Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“Try harder.”

Shiro turned around, not wanting to see his clone anymore. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Lance standing in the hallway of the castle ship. Shiro knew it was a memory, but that it wasn’t his.

“ Shiro? Are you feeling okay?” Shiro shuttered, feeling Lance’s hand stroke his arm. “ Do you need me?”

“You’re not real,” Shiro whispered, mostly to calm himself. Lance leaned closer, and suddenly he was kissing him, pulling him next to a large beam on the castle ship’s wall. “Let me be useful…”

“ Lance, no… ” But as soon as the memory began, the vision of Lance disappeared like a mist.

“ Sorry about that. That’s… that’s my memory.” The clone’s voice in the blurry darkness made Shiro’s blood boil. Something about hearing his own voice talking to him with a different will didn’t sit right.

“I know it’s your memory. Keep it to yourself!”

Shiro turned around again, but suddenly he was inside his room, and he was naked, Lance under him, his underwear stuffed in his mouth and his hands tied behind his back with Shiro’s belt. Shiro was inside him, and his eyes widened at the sight. He was so warm, and Lance was a beautiful wreck underneath him, but it was wrong. He pulled away from Lance, breathing heavily, and again, Lance disappeared. The room, the castle-ship, everything around Shiro vanished until he stood in nothingness - the clear black of his mind. His clone was there, arms crossed.

“Why are you doing this?” Shiro demanded.

“I'm not doing this. You wanted to see me and the closer you are to me, the more our memories will start to meld.”

“No, you need to stop! That wasn’t me!”

“You’re right, this wasn’t you. It was me. But I can’t stop. It’s not up to me, and it’s not up to you. We’re two versions of the same soul, Shiro. Unless you give me a name it’s going to be very hard to keep our entities separate.”

“What?”

“I've been thinking, as one does when one is trapped in a mind, and our memories - what you know as yourself and what you think of me, we’re not separate enough as we are. If you give me a name we might be able to slow it down."

“Give yourself a name, then!”

“Fine, call me Shiro.”

Shiro sighed and pinched his nose. “You can’t be Shiro too.”

“Then give me a name.”

“Get. Lost.”

Shiro blinked and found himself surrounded by tubes filled with clones, and Keith struggling to defend himself against the false Shiro's attacks.

“No! Keith!”

Shiro could feel his clone’s memory of Haggar’s hold on his mind, telling him to use the emotional bond he had with Keith to bring him down.

“I should have abandoned you! Just like your parents did! They saw that you were broken, worthless, I should have seen it too. ”

“No! Keith that’s not true!” Shiro screamed out, but his voice couldn’t mix with the memory. "Keith!"

At once, the scene before him disappeared. Shiro’s clone stood there, in the black with him. He couldn't keep seeing these. He had to name his clone.

“You said the Witch’s acolytes put in motion an- an operation.”

“Operation Kuron.”

“There. That’s your name. Kuron.”

“Kuron.” The clone repeated. “It’s fitting.”

“Are you happy now?”

“Yes.”

Good, then leave me alone!”

“Not so fast. There's something I do want you to see.” Kuron closed his eyes, and Shiro was suddenly sitting in the castle ship lounge, Coran beside him, Hunk and Pidge to his right, and Lance on the other side of Coran. Allura sat with them, too. There was a hologram in front of him, and everyone seemed to be having a good time.

“What is this?”

“Monsters and Mana. Coran taught us. It’s a fun game, and the team really bonded over this. I enjoyed it. Watch.”

Shiro watched as Kuron’s memory placed him inside the circle, playing among them.

“I am Shiro’s twin brother, Gyro! Here to complete Shiro’s quest!”

Shiro smiled, wondering if he should have named his clone Gyro instead.

He almost didn’t want to enjoy seeing this, but everyone looked like they were working hard to defeat a common enemy - something Coran had cooked up. At the end of the game, Coran and Kuron sat together, talking.

“I wanna be a Paladin again.”

Everyone around the table groaned, and Shiro smiled. The scene faded to black, but Kuron wasn’t there. He looked around, and could see him lying on his bed in the castle ship detached from anything else - just his bed in the middle of the black nothingness.

“I still don’t trust you completely.”

“You don’t have to. I’m just here, in your head, but now it should be easier to keep these memories at bay.”

“I still don’t like this.”

“Well, your alternative was being dead, and haunting Lance and Keith from the Astral plane, so.”

“How do I know you won’t try anything?”

Kuron sat up and sighed. “Shiro, all I ever wanted was to be a good leader to the paladins, and I wanted them to be safe. Haggar ruined that for me. But now you’re back, and you’re going to lead them home. That’s all I want. If you ever need me, I’ll be here. Just call my name.”

“And what? You’ll just be here? Doing nothing?”

“I have my memories. And I see everything you see. If you do anything stupid I’ll see it.”

“Don’t hold your breath.”

Kuron smiled, then disappeared. Shiro sighed. The black of his mind echoed for a moment. He decided to focus on something, anything - to get him out of the nothingness. He pictured Keith’s shed again, and it appeared. Keith was there, and Shiro smiled.

* * *

 

Lance rolled over in the Red lion, waking up and stretching as he yawned. It was evening, and the sun was low on the horizon of this planet. He got up, wiped his eyes and sighed. He’d spent some time before he slept crying, but he felt so much better physically after finally getting some rest. He didn't dream at all- but it was probably for the best. He slipped on his pants and his shirt, wanting to explore the city before Allura started rounding everyone up. He quietly opened the door to his lion and stepped out onto the hill. Just as he rounded the back leg of his Lion, he ran into Keith, fully dressed and hunched over as if he was about to sneak off.

“Hey, Keith, where are you going?”

“Nowhere.” Keith eyed Lance, seeing as Lance was also fully dressed and looking like he was about to wander off. “Where are you going?”

“Thought I’d explore the city a little bit.”

Keith’s hands dove directly into his pockets. If his hands were put away they couldn’t behave on their own, and he felt safer that way. “Yeah, me too.”

Lance and Keith stood together silently for a moment.

“Would you-” They spoke together, interrupting one another.

“Sorry.” They apologized, and looked down at the floor. Keith held his hand against the back of his neck, but soon perked up when he settled on a topic.

“Uh, I actually have been meaning to ask you if you have something for, uh- I have this, uh, zit on my forehead... Is that gross? I just need some help getting rid of it.”

Lance leaned forward. “I don’t see it.”

Keith swiped his hair back, showing his hairline, and the smallest pimple Lance had ever seen. It was a miracle that Keith did so little to his skin and still had next to flawless complexion.

“That’s the tiniest-” Lance smiled, realizing the power he had. “Yeah that’s a big one. You need a doctor. Not sure you’re gonna make it.”

“Ha ha. Come on Lance. I know you know how to make it go away.”

“I know, I’m kidding.” Lance twisted his mouth, thinking for a second before smirking. “Come with me into the city.”

“The city?”

“Yeah, the town in the valley. I want to check it out. Maybe we can find something for your hideous affliction.”

Keith shook his head, wanting to roll his eyes at Lance’s teasing. “Yeah, yeah whatever. I’ll go with you.”

Lance led the way, and Keith followed - his thumbs resting outside his pockets while his hands remained comfortably against his legs surrounded by the fabric of his jeans. Today he had put on his casual clothes instead of his Marmora suit.

The two of them walked through the busy marketplace. This planet was very diverse in terms of the races of aliens. It was likely a common port for many travel routes. Lance took in the different smells and sights, Keith followed close behind, taking in the sights of various herbs, spices, and meats surrounding them in the market.

Both of them could see a street that was very obviously mostly butcher shops the way the blood pooled in muddy puddles along the stones. They decided to walk past.

They ventured further through the marketplace where a nearby vendor made claims about how her creams worked better for anti-aging than others. This part of the market seemed nicer, and Lance could see bigger, newer, shinier vessels parked not too far above the line of buildings. They stood surrounded by several large jars of spices and pastes. Keith nudged Lance and whispered, “So, how can you tell which alien goop is good for your skin and what’s not?”

Lance kicked up a bit of dust on the side of the road. It lifted higher than he expected. This planet’s gravity was not as strong as Lance thought it’d be, considering its size. He almost forgot to answer Keith’s question. “Chemistry.”

“Chemistry?”

Lance leaned in to whisper back to Keith. “Skin care boils down to good chemistry. Our skin is fairly acidic to ward off bacteria. But it’s a balancing act, too little oils and your skin gets flaky and wrinkles faster, so it helps every now and then to give your skin a little acidic boost. Take for example, Kaltenecker’s milk.”

“Her… milk ?”

Lance wafted the scent from a pile of spices, but backed away, fearing his nose hairs would be burned off. “Raw milk has lots of B-vitamins, alpha hydroxy acids, calcium, and like a bazillion other antioxidants. It has a pH of around 6.5 to 6.7 which makes it slightly acidic.”

“Wait, are you telling me that you use straight milk on your face?”

“Yeah.”

Keith’s face scrunched together. “Is that the real reason why you brought Kaltenecker?”

“What? No! I love that cow. She’s sweet. But the fact that her milk helps to even out skin tone is a nice perk. Her milk is actually what I would suggest using for your face.”

“Then why did we come all the way out here? Kaltenecker is with everyone else.”

“I wanted to see if this market has anything I can use.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, yet.”

The two of them walked down shabby dirt roads that wound and curved against stone buildings. The structures were different than the high-tech planets they’d seen. It was strange, seeing various levels of technology interacting with seemingly antiquated architecture. Some vendors sold directly from their cargo pods, and some people moved around on hover scooters. There were those who obviously had money, and those who obviously didn’t. Lance admitted this place was shadier than he’d expected it to be.

They came upon a group of barefoot children kicking around a ball in the dirt. Lance found it odd that no one had called them inside yet, considering how dark it was getting. Keith looked at them and knew at once it was because they had no one waiting for them to call them indoors.

The ball rolled over to Lance and stopped at his feet. The children who had been following it stopped when they saw the two strangers standing before them. Lance smiled, passing the ball from one foot to his other, moving it skillfully and getting the ball into the air. He made light taps, keeping the ball airborne as the children looked on mesmerized. He passed it to them, and they began attempting to replicate Lance’s footwork as he and Keith walked away from the dusty field where they played.

“What’s this place called?” Lance spoke into the open air.

Keith walked past him, seeing a vendor with a collection of knives. “Zarkon’s Armpit?”

“Was that a joke?” Lance walked over, watching Keith gape over the various blades.

“It’s called Erashon, and the planet is a mixture of anyone who lands here. Since it’s so far away from the core of the Galra empire, it’s a popular black market spot. Or so I have been told.”

Keith’s eyes twinkled over the display of weapons. The vendor behind the counter leaned forward and whispered to Keith. “You’ve heard right. With the right money, You Want It, We Have it.”

Lance could hear a drum playing, the rhythm was off - strange and far apart, but the sound was familiar. “Keith do you hear that?”

Keith concentrated on backing away from the counter and the slimy salesman in front of him, not sure exactly what he was offering but decided whatever it was he didn't want it.

Lance kept hearing the sound reverberating against the stone walls and metal vessels that made up the market. “That drum. It’s being played all wrong. It sounds so sad.” Lance started to follow the sound as it echoed off the stones of the courtyard just to their left.

Keith finally got far enough away from the vendor to realize that Lance had already moved several feet away. “Wait up!”

They stepped under an archway that led to the wide open plaza, and they stopped and gaped at the beautiful buildings that surrounded them. It was different from the market where they just came from. The people here were rich, and the plaza reflected it. There were restaurants around where couples sat down for an evening dinner, but the only out of place thing was the sound of the drum.

“This place is so pretty, don't you think, Lance?” Keith looked to where he thought Lance was standing, but Lance was on the move again, following the sound to the middle of the courtyard next to a fountain. Keith caught up when Lance stopped in front of a grey-skinned alien with large teeth similar to a walrus. He sat on the ground, and in the dimming light they could see he had an almost empty case beside him - people walked past dropping nothing in it. The alien struck the middle of the two drums with an open palm at ill-paced intervals.

“You’re playing that drum wrong.” Lance’s voice stirred the alien from his playing, and he looked up.

“Excuse me?”

“That’s not how you play those. The rhythm- the way you strike it... it’s all off.”

Keith looked at Lance with wide eyes. The alien stood up, and towered over the two of them.

“Oh, and you can play these?”

“Yes I can.”

The alien laughed, but quieted when he realized the small stranger in front of him was serious. “Be my guest. These drums haven’t gotten me a single copper piece today, let’s see you do any better.”

Lance stepped forward and sat with the drums between his legs, holding them in place as he sat cross-legged. He smoothed his hands over the dry skin of the smaller drum, and Lance closed his eyes and began striking the edge of it with his fingers, not harshly, not gently, but just right.

Keith’s brows lifted in surprise at the sound - it was like nothing he’d ever heard before. It started fast-paced, but smooth. Every beat following the other like a fluid motion - but like waves the sound would speed up and slow down - and Lance’s hands moved from the edges of the drum to the middle - back and forth on each one. The larger drum sounded more hollow than the other, and together the dance of the beat made even Keith sway. People began to gather around Lance as he played, the beat echoing in the low light of the square. Lance’s eyes were closed, his face serene as he played. A stranger walked up, dropping coins in the bucket next to Lance. She was the first, but more people came, giving Lance all the spare change they had. Feminine-appearing aliens approached the front of the crowd that was gathering, and Keith noticed their obvious swooning. He watched Lance move with the drums, and people swayed with him. Keith kept his arms crossed, trying his hardest not to look too pissed off but failing miserably. Lance was a lady killer. He always had been. The sensuality of his movements were not to be ignored, and the music he made was hauntingly delicious. Keith stared right at him taking the opportunity to soak in Lance’s face, his hands, and his body. Lance’s eyes were closed, and Keith could see the gentle curl of his eyelashes. It wasn’t often Keith got the opportunity to stare at Lance blatantly without feeling out of place.

The sun had set completely now, and the couples who were sitting at the restaurants around them were now dancing in the courtyard. More people tipped, and Keith smiled, thinking about how cool Lance looked in the orange glow of the restaurant lights. Behind Lance, lights in the fountain turned on, illuminating Lance further, and Keith could see a smile on his pretty mouth.

Dark thoughts crept up on Keith, wondering how Lance, of all people, ended up being hurt the most by Shiro’s clone. Lance had always seemed so confident, and so cheerful. Even now, nobody in the crowd could tell how much hurt he’d been hiding. If Shiro and the team hadn’t found out, how much longer would Lance have had to hide? Keith struggled to repress his feelings of guilt. Shiro was right, it wasn’t his fault that this happened, but maybe if Lance had someone to tell - anyone - maybe it wouldn’t have gone on for so long. Keith sighed, but came away from his thoughts as Lance finished his solo. The people around applauded him, and Keith clapped alongside them, mustering a smile for Lance.

Lance stood and bowed, keeping the drums to his side. He walked over to the alien that had been playing earlier, holding the drums out to him. The alien held his palm up, not taking the drums back.

“Kid, I’ll sell you the drum for a cut of your tips.”

Lance smiled. “Are you sure?”

“I’ll never draw a crowd like you just did on those things. Take it off my hands and I’ll use the money to buy something that will.”

Keith waited nearby as Lance grabbed a few handfuls of coins and shoved them into his pockets, leaving the rest for the grey alien to keep. Lance walked over, coins jingling in his pockets and his drums in hand.

“Keith! That guy was super nice. Check it out! Maybe now you can buy that knife you were looking at earlier!”

Keith laughed. “I don’t really want to go back there, and it’s your money- you earned it. Spend it on yourself.”

“Yeah, it’s my money but I want to spend it on you, okay?”

Keith felt the air leave the tiny atmosphere of his personal space. His could feel his ears heat up, and wondered how red he probably looked right now. Lance didn’t seem to even realize what he’d just said as he walked away from the crowd, and away from the girls who approached them. Keith followed, eventually finding breath as they left the eyes of the plaza.

“Besides, you bought me something, remember? I should return the favor.”

Something about Lance returning a favor made Keith feel a little less heated. This was probably something that friends did regularly. Nothing special. Keith found his breath again.

Lance clicked his tongue as they approached the spot where the knife vendor had been, seeing as the shop had been closed.

“I forgot how late it is here. This is some serious space jet-lag.”

Keith chuckled to himself, surprised how relieved he was that the knife vendor had closed shop. “It’s fine, we should probably head back anyway. We’ve been gone a while.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right. But don’t think I’m not going to get you something eventually.”

Keith nodded, and the two of them walked together away from the once bustling market, Lance’s pockets jingling with each step. As they walked further towards the hills, there were less people and less light. Keith couldn’t help but shake the feeling they were being followed. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, and he could almost smell someone approaching.

Keith breathed in, hearing a third set of footsteps echoing off the alleyways to Lance’s left. Keith grabbed Lance and pulled him to his right side, his hand gripping the hilt of his blade.

“Who’s there?”

Allura stepped out, her eyes wide upon seeing the boys.

“Where have you two been all this time?! We were worried sick!”

Keith started to answer her, “We were just-”

“It was my idea to explore the town.” Lance interrupted, stepping forward.

Allura sighed, letting her arms hit the sides of her legs. “Lance, there’s a reason we camped out in the hills. You can’t wander off on this planet. It’s very dangerous and-” Allura placed her index finger and thumb on the bridge of her nose, sighing heavily. “What if something happened to you?”

Lance shifted his weight to one foot and clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth together for a moment.

Allura continued. “The people here, they’re-”

“Dangerous?” Lance repeated Allura’s words. “We’ve been out here all night. The people are rough around the edges but they’re kind enough.”

Keith observed Lance for a moment before turning back to Allura. “Princess, the point is that nothing happened. We’re okay.”

Allura placed two fingers in her mouth and whistled, and within seconds, Krolia came running down the alley. “Did you find them?” She stopped, seeing Keith.

“Where were you?”

“We were just exploring the town. It’s not a big deal.”

Krolia opened her mouth to say something, but saw Lance, and looked to Keith. Her head turned slightly, giving Keith a sidelong glance.

Lance had enough standing there, and began to walk away towards the hill overlooking the town.

“Lance, wait!”

Lance’s long legs normally would have made it that much harder for Keith to catch up, but Keith had grown considerably, and caught up to Lance.

“Lance, why are you mad?”

“Why do you think?”

“I literally have no idea.”

Lance turned around, his nostrils flaring. Keith stopped walking, and the angle of the hill made Lance seem tall again as Keith was behind him.

“About this whole Shiro's clone thing - I didn’t want anyone to know because then they’d treat me different! I don’t want to be treated like I can’t take care of myself or that I’m a kid because I’m not! You saw how Allura acted. She thinks I can’t go off alone, like I can’t handle myself. She looks at me now like I need to be protected.”

“Lance, you weren’t alone, and I’m sure she doesn’t think of you different, they would have been worried anyway.”

“How could she not think of me different? This is exactly what I wanted to avoid.” Lance turned back around, hiking up the hill with an unbelievable pace. Keith kept up, and Allura and Krolia followed behind them.

“Lance, please! I’m sure she doesn’t see you different, Lance.”

Lance turned around again, this time getting closer to Keith, using the angle of the hill to stare down at him. “And what about _you_ , Keith?”

Keith was tempted to feel small against Lance’s snarl, but that just wasn’t in his nature.

“What _about me_ , Lance?”

“You say she doesn’t see me any different, but take a look at yourself, Keith! Don’t think I didn’t notice how protective you’ve been of me since this whole thing blew up!”

“What are you talking about?”

“When you heard someone coming down the alleyway your first instinct was to move me away from it!”

“Because you’re my friend!”

“Because you don’t respect me!”

Keith blinked. “What? Of course I respect you!”

“No, you don’t, Keith. You don’t see me as your equal. You _never_ have. I spent years working hard to even be considered your rival, you didn’t even remember me! And now that you know that I’m weak, you see me as broken and- and disgusting, don’t you?”

“Lance, I don’t see you as weak.”

Lance could see Krolia and Allura getting closer, and he moved away from Keith without another word. They eventually reached the top of the hill, and Pidge was the first to see them.

“They’re back!” Pidge saw the drums Lance was carrying. “What’s with the bongos?”

Shiro had been pacing, and started walking towards them. Lance walked past him and headed for the Red lion.

“Lance!” Allura called out to Lance, but he had already locked himself away in his lion. Allura sighed, then looked to Keith.

“What were you two doing?”

“We just wanted to explore and-”

“Lance’s pockets were very obviously filled with money! What if you had been robbed or- or worse!”

“Lance and I are trained paladins of Voltron. We could have handled ourselves.”

Shiro grunted. “You didn’t tell anybody where you were going! We had no idea where you were!”

“Everyone was still asleep when we left, we didn’t think we’d be gone that long.”

Hunk approached the Red lion’s hatch, knocking on it. “Lance? Buddy? It’s me, Hunk. You wanna come out? Maybe we can talk- or something.”

Inside, Lance sat in his pilot chair, and the Red Lion felt him, but instead of purring, the Lion mewled as if it was distressed.

“Not you, too! I don’t need any mouth from you.”

The Red Lion growled at Lance, but it wasn’t aggression, and Lance looked at screens of the Lion carefully.

* * *

 

Hunk could hear scuffling from inside the lion, and the hatch opened. Hunk stepped back as Lance came running out with his bayard already transformed into its rifle form.

“Whoa! Lance!” Hunk raised his hands up, but Lance ran past him, aiming up at the sky and firing after a short aim.

Everyone looked at Lance, confused. Lance transformed his bayard back as his eyes followed something in the sky falling down, and everyone gasped as a large Galra droid fell to the ground with a loud clunk.

“We’ve been spotted. Everyone get in your lions!” Lance turned to Keith. “Grab Kaltenecker! We gotta go!”

Everyone hurried to get into their Lions, and Shiro helped Keith pull Kaltenecker into the black lion quickly. Shiro was getting ready to enter the hatch with Keith and Krolia when a hailstorm of laser blasts began pouring down on them. One of the shots hit Shiro’s back and he screamed as Keith readied the black lion for lift-off. Krolia dragged Shiro in just as the hatch closed and the Lion began their ascent. Shiro’s voice shivered in waves of pain.

“Shiro?! What happened?” Keith’s voice could be heard over the radio. In the background, everyone could hear Shiro groaning, followed by Krolia’s voice yelling, “Shiro’s been hit!”

“Dammit!” Keith tried to concentrate on flying his lion, but three Galran fighters were already on their tail, having entered the atmosphere sometime after Lance struck down their scout droid.

“I got three on me!”

“I got you!” Hunk turned his lion around, activating his cannon blaster and firing at the fighters on Keith, knocking two out.

“I still got one!”

“I’m on it!” Pidge fired her cannon, and vines erupted from inside the enemy ship, causing it to shut down and fall out of the sky. It fell into the city, into the middle of the courtyard on top of a familiar fountain - luckily not crushing any buildings.

“We got more incoming!” Lance shouted.

Allura veered a hard right, flying away from the town. “We must lead them away from the city!”

The other paladins did the same as four more chasers descended from the atmosphere.

“There’s a small fleet hovering above the atmosphere!” Pidge announced.

“Then why aren’t they all coming for us?” Keith shouted.

“Shiro just passed out!” Krolia cried from the back of the Black Lion. Kaltenecker bellowed, trying to keep her balance in the fast-moving Lion. Keith watched his mother try to tend to Shiro from the cargo area on his monitor, and found himself praying that Shiro would be okay.

Lance turned the red lion, flying towards the fighter ships, dodging their blasts as he sent attacks of his own. Keith could see him flying forward, and he snapped back into the reality of the fight.

“Lance! Get back here!” Keith commanded. Lance ignored the order and took out two of the ships while the other two flanked him.

“LANCE!” Keith shouted, and the two fighters shot their lasers from either side of the red lion, but Lance was quick to maneuver away, forcing the fighters to shoot each other.

“They aren’t attacking in full force because they want the planet intact! We need to attack the fleet or they’ll take over! These people must have something they want!” Lance shouted as the fighter pilots exploded beneath them on the dry, cracked ground.

“That doesn’t make sense! What could a forsaken rock like this have that the Galra wants?!” Hunk screamed.

Allura gripped the handles of the blue lion. “Whatever it is, we can’t let them have it.”

Keith grit his teeth. “Either way, they’re bad news. On me, Form Voltron!”

The paladins flew forward together, concentrating on making a connection that never came.

After a an agonizingly silent pause, everyone sighed and groaned.

“Why can’t we do it?” Pidge said, frustrated.

Keith grunted. “I don’t know! But we have to defend this planet or that fleet’s going to bring hell!”

The Lions entered space, not having been able to form Voltron, and suddenly faced with a Galra Battleship.

Krolia yelled from the cargo hold, “Keith! Shiro’s burns are extensive, we need to get him somewhere safe fast!”

“But the planet!” Keith zoomed forward, making Kaltenecker slide up and onto Krolia, who barely stopped the cow from crushing her and Shiro. “Keith! This beast is going to be the end of us!” Krolia’s voice on Keith’s monitor kept Keith’s mind occupied. What if Shiro died again? What if this time he couldn’t pull through?

Keith gripped the handles of the Black Lion. With Kaltenecker not strapped in and Shiro injured as badly as he was, there weren’t many options. If he went through with protecting the planet, he risked the lives of everyone. And as Shiro lay unconscious, Keith realized he couldn’t lose him again.

Keith grunted. “Guys, this is bad! We’re going to have to escape!”

“Escape?! Are you kidding?” Lance yelled.

“I have Kaltenecker and an injured Shiro in here! We can’t fight this one!”

“The planet is depending on us, Keith!” Lance protested.

“We have a mission, Lance!” Keith’s voice was deep and serious over the radio as he tried to relay the weight of the situation.

Lance frowned. “Our mission is to save the universe!”

“By getting the castle plans! We can’t do that if we die!”

Lance was silent on the radio for a moment as the fighters approached. The other lions pulled away, but the Red lion stayed still. A few more tics and the fighters would be within range.

“Lance! Pull back!” Keith ordered.

The fighters readied their lasers.

“Lance!” Keith pleaded. “Don’t do this!”

Lance pushed forward, directly into the line of fire of the fighters. “I’m only good for one thing, Keith.”

“LANCE!”

The red lion spun, dodging blasts left and right.

“He’s going to get himself killed!” Pidge shrieked.

“Paladins, we have to help Lance!” Allura launched the blue lion forward into the fight.

The other paladins followed suit, leaving Keith to look at Shiro on his monitor, who lay on the floor in the cargo hold behind Kaltenecker, who had since sat down.

Keith turned back to focus on the fight before him. He was a damn good pilot, but now it wasn’t just his life on the line. He had Shiro, and his mom, and if he flew too erratically they could get crushed easily by Kaltenecker - and if he got hit, they’d get hit too. He didn’t have a choice anymore. Lance had engaged in the fight, and if Keith stood still they’d all get killed. “Shadow!” Keith called his Space wolf, and Lance heard a sound from the back of his Lion, but didn’t have time to investigate. Keith’s wolf appeared in the cockpit, and he looked at her face. “Get to my mom.” The wolf disappeared with a burst of blue light, and Krolia gasped when the wolf appeared before her. “Hold onto Kaltenecker and Shiro, then make sure you’re all touching Shadow!” Keith yelled through the screen.

Krolia did as her son told her, and when they were ready, Keith yelled, “Take them somewhere safe!” Just like that, Shadow, Krolia, Shiro, and Kaltenecker were gone. Keith grit his teeth and thrust ahead into the fight, praying that wherever they were, they were safe.

“I’m hit!” Pidge’s radio signal weakened as she spoke. “I still got one one me!”

Keith cut through the fighter locked onto Pidge, but he was more worried about the battleship cannons.

“We need to fly through the swarm and take out the cannons or they’ll annihilate us the second they have a clear shot!” Before Keith could finish his sentence, Lance was already zooming past towards the battleship, several fighters on him as he flew evasively.

“Someone cover me!”

“I can’t! I’m taking too much heat!” Hunk cried out.

“I got you, Hunk!” Pidge shot down fighters around Hunk.

Lance was still out in the open, and eventually one of them was going to hit his Lion no matter how good of a pilot he was. “Allura? You got me?”

“I’m making my way to you, Lance!” Allura’s voice over the radio was a relief. Lance hadn’t spotted her since he entered the swarm, but his relief was short-lived. Lance could see the ion cannon readying, but it wasn’t pointed at him. He followed the line of the cannon to the black lion.

“No.” Lance said softly. “ Keith, look out!”

Just as the cannon was about to fire, a large blast from Lance’s west struck the barrell, combusting it upon itself and ripping a hole in the hull. Lance turned to see Captain Ulya’s cargo ship, except now it was decked out with large Galra ion cannons.

Allura got a hail on her Lion.

“Captain Ulya!” She smiled, seeing the captain’s face.

“Did you think you could have all the fun without us?”

“I’m overjoyed to see you, Captain Ulya. We need to take down that battleship and these fighters.”

“Say no more.”

Captain Ulya’s ship readied itself for another blast, and several fighters soared towards the large vessel to take it down.

“Lance, we need to protect Ulya’s ship.”

“You got it!”

The paladins shot down the swarm one by one as Captain Ulya fired one final shot to the Galra battleship, disabling it completely.

“She’s down!”

The paladins cheered as the droid-piloted ships shut down, leaving only the manned chasers to fend for themselves. The paladins shot down the remaining ships, then boarded Captain Ulya’s ship. The Paladins exited their Lions, and Lance ran up to the Black Lion as Keith got out.

“Keith! Are you okay?”

“Lance! That was the most reckless thing you’ve ever-” Keith stomped forward angrily, but was surprised by a hug.

“Shut up, you’re reckless, too.”

Keith sighed, hugging him back.

Lance let go, peering over Keith’s shoulder into the Black Lion. “Where’s Shiro?”

Keith pulled away. “Somewhere safe.”

“Where’s somewhere safe?”

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean _you don’t know?_ And where’s Kaltenecker- and your mom? Where…?”

“They’re all together, wherever they are.”

Lance gripped Keith’s arms.

“How do you lose _an entire cow_? And not one- but TWO people?”

“My wolf can teleport, okay? I just- told her to go somewhere safe with them.”

“And you let them go?! Shiro was injured! We could be giving him treatment right now!”

“What was I supposed to do, Lance? You were diving in head-first towards the fighters and you were going to take us all down with you! I couldn’t fly with a clear head knowing they were in the Lion with me, so I sent them somewhere!”

The other paladins got off their lions to the sound of Lance and Keith arguing. Allura tried to shush them saying, “I’m sure they’re fine.”

Lance threw his hands up in the air. “Sure, we don’t know where they are but I’m sure your space dog is smart enough to know what the word safe means.”

Just then, first mate Geno walked into the hangar.

“Paladins of Voltron! We have your defector.”

Krolia stepped in the room, Shadow at her side.

“Mom!” Keith wasn’t sure if he wanted to run, or walk, but Krolia ran up to him, meeting him in the middle and hugged.

“I knew you’d make it out.”

Lance called out from where he stood by the Black Lion. “Where’s Shiro?”

Geno answered, “The white-haired fellow is in a healing pod right now. He had some deep wounds but not a whole lot of bleeding. The one thing about lasers is the wound gets cauterized, which worked in his favor. We moved the big beast to the cargo area, but I assume you'd like to see your hurt friend first. I can show you to him.”

The Paladins and Krolia followed Geno to the medical bay. The healing pod was Galra-tech, coincidentally another stolen good. Keith held his palm up to the glass as Shiro slept and sighed deeply. “You have a hard time not getting shot, don’t you?” Keith chuckled to himself.

The other Paladins waited in the med bay with Keith, but Lance walked away to find somewhere he could be alone. He found a window overlooking Erashon. By now, the town he had explored earlier was probably wide awake and investigating the fallen Galra ship. Lance smiled, knowing the planet would be alright.

Hunk sat down with him, startling him.

“You saved us, Lance.”

Lance blinked. “What? No I didn’t. I put us all in danger. You heard Keith, I could have gotten us killed. I almost got everyone killed.”

“But you were the one who got us to do anything.”

Lance hung his head low. “But that wasn’t me, that was Red. Without the lion telling me about the scout, I never would have known. I was just in the right place at the right time.”

“No, Lance, I meant about the planet.”

“What?”

‘When Keith told us to abandon the planet, it felt wrong. We’re Voltron, we’re supposed to help people. Without that, we’re lost. You saved us, Lance. You saved what makes us Voltron.”

Lance scoffed. “Keith made the decision to abandon Erashon because Keith is a good leader, Hunk. Keith knew we couldn’t lose our chance of completing the mission for the sake of one planet. And given the circumstances - if I had Shiro in the back of my Lion I might have tried to abandon these people, too.”

“Then why didn’t you follow orders?”

Lance shrugged. “It didn’t feel right to abandon them.”

“That’s because you’re a good person, Lance. You always know what’s right when everything feels wrong.”

Lance sighed. “Shiro got hurt.”

“That’s not your fault.”

“Pidge could have died, or you.”

“But we didn’t.”

“Yeah, but at no thanks to me. I- ugh. If it weren’t for Captain Ulya coming when she did, we would have all died.”

“You don’t know that, Lance.”

“But I do. I saw the cannon lining up with the Black Lion and in a second I would have taken everything back. This is real, Hunk and I’m- I’m no good.”

“Lance, you’re overthinking this.”

“No, I’m not, Hunk. This is serious. I messed up.”

“There’s nothing you can do about it.”

“I doubt that.” Lance stood up and marched away from the view of the planet, now adorned with a halo of orbiting debris from the remnants of the Galran ships. Hunk sighed, but stood, following Lance to the med bay. When they arrived, Keith was still peering at Shiro through the glass in the pod.

“Keith, we need to talk.” Keith looked up, but before Lance could say anything else, Captain Ulya walked up to Lance, the members of her crew and Geno behind her.

“Is this the pilot who braved the swarm?” Captain Ulya posed the question to the room while looking straight at Lance.

“Yep! He’s the one.” Hunk spoke from behind Lance, who turned to sneer at Hunk before turning back to the Captain.

“That was me, yes.” Lance looked down, fully expecting some kind of grilling.

The Captain took a deep breath. “I had my doubts about Voltron before, even after I met you all the first time. I figured Voltron was simply a symbol for the resistance. Good or bad, my understanding of your role was that you were all talk and no show - Especially after all the campaigning and the strange plays of Voltron I’ve heard about, I am ashamed to admit that I assumed you were nothing more than a mere puppet - a weapon controlled by a handful that merely attempted to inspire the resistance. But, seeing how you fought tooth and nail to save Erashon made me realize how serious you all are. Erashon is where we acquire most of our stolen Galra goods, we pledge to take these arms to the resistance. You, and the other paladins of Voltron, have inspired me and my crew more than you can imagine. I thought Voltron was just another mega-weapon that would eventually be used to take over the universe after the Galra was taken down, but if you care about even the most forsaken planets, then Voltron is more than a weapon. It’s a shield with a soul, and from this day forward, I will name my ship The Courage, after what we all witnessed today.”

Captain Ulya and her First Mate Geno gently bowed, extending their palms and showing their hands.

Allura walked up to where Lance was and stood beside him. She smiled at the scene before her. “The Unilu bow is one of great reverence, as they show all their open palms in a rare gesture of goodwill, peace, and loyalty. I have not seen it in over ten thousand years.”

Lance smiled, trying not to fight the warmth he felt from such an honor. He glanced to the healing pod where Shiro was, but Keith wasn’t next to it anymore. Hunk was there, gesturing at the Captain as if to say, “ _say something_.”

Lance turned back to the Captain. “We’re just doing our best. I’m glad we have inspired you. We’re the paladins of Voltron, and wherever we can help, we fight.”

Ulya led her crew in a triumphant cheer for Lance, and she promised to treat the Paladins to a feast. The crew and Geno left to begin preparations, and Allura and Ulya began to converse.

Lance slipped away and followed a corridor that was likely to be the path Keith took to go somewhere quiet. He saw Keith with his dog, Shadow, at the same window Lance had looked out of not long ago. Keith had changed into his Blade of Marmora suit, and Lance watched as he talked and pet Shadow, telling her what a good dog she had been.

Lance knocked on the door frame, and Keith stood up, but didn’t bother looking at Lance as he spoke. “Do you have your bayard with you?”

“What? No. Why?”

“Go get it.”

Lance wasn’t sure why Keith needed Lance’s bayard, but he went to retrieve it and stepped back into the room a few minutes later. Keith stood at one end of the room, fiery determination in his eyes.

“Draw your weapon.”

Lance squinted, confused. “I don’t understand.”

“Draw. Your. Weapon.”

Lance transformed his bayard into the Altean broadsword as Keith transformed his Marmora blade.

“So what’s this about, Keith?”

The two of them stepped sideways, in a circle, like a deadly dance, reading each other for sudden movements.

“I’m not much for talking, but I figure we need to let off some steam.”

Keith rushed towards Lance, and Lance counter moved, blocking Keith’s first swing and anticipating his next hit to block it. Their blades slid off each other and they backed away with a good thrust, forcing them to restart the dance.

Keith spoke again, keeping his eyes focused on Lance. “On Erashon, you said I don’t respect you.”

Lance was just as focused on Keith, and it was probably the only time the two of them could eye each other up and down without secrecy.

“I still think you don’t.” Lance was the first to make his move this time, attacking smoothly, but Keith was just as smooth, countering then attacking. What Lance had in agility, Keith had in experience.

“I respect you, Lance. More than you know.”

Keith thought he had Lance cornered, but it wasn’t until he saw Lance’s grin that he realized he had a sword at his throat. He quickly leaped away from Lance, but he couldn’t catch a break as the blades of their swords clanged together harshly. It didn't take long for Keith to get on equal footing again.

“You disobeyed my orders, Lance”

“We couldn’t abandon those people!”

“You and I both know it wasn’t about them. You were behaving recklessly because you think your life isn’t worth anything!”

“Look who’s talking! We all know that right before we captured Lotor you had every intention of flying into that Galra ship before Lotor came and blew it up.”

“That was different!”

Lance pushed forward and Keith blocked, their blades pushing against the other and their faces only inches apart.

“ _Was it, though?_ ”

“I was prepared to sacrifice myself for the greater good.”

“So was I!”

Keith kicked Lance away, their swords no longer touching. Lance didn’t have time to truly recover before Keith was on him again, forcing Lance to be on the defensive.

“If you knew how much it sucked to have your best friend try to kill themselves right in front of you _why the fuck_ would you do it to me?” Keith growled.

“I wasn’t exactly planning on dying.”

“It didn’t look that way to me.”  Keith grunted.

“You and I both know that out of everyone, I’m the nonessential one.”

“You selfish prick! You’re not expendable!”

Keith rained down a flurry of blows, Lance having to block each one. Lance couldn’t even get a word in as Keith continued his rant. “You have _a family!_ You have _friends!_ If there was ever anyone who was expendable, it was me! I didn’t have _anyone_ to go home to, Lance! And then you came along and became my friend, and then I met my mom. I have everything to live for _now_ but you’ve _always_ had those things, so stop saying that you’re nonessential or expendable because you’re not!”

Lance managed to attack, but Keith dodged it easily.

They were silent only for a moment as they continued their fight, Keith using everything - the wall, the furniture, anything he could to slow Lance down. Lance hadn’t ever had to use his sword against anyone in battle yet - but he was learning quick.

“So what, you think that because you didn’t have a family that it makes it okay that you tried to do that? You’re probably the universe’s best hope at defeating the Galra! You’re essential to the existence of everything that I love! My family, Pidge’s family! _Shiro_ , Hunk - everyone! And you were important to me long before you ever noticed I was trying so hard. And what about Shiro? How do you think that would have made him feel? Who’s really the selfish one, huh? You couldn’t even give anyone else the time of day! Then you fucked off into space like some kind of lone wolf because you thought the team could stand to lose you!”

“You _knew_ we had one too many Paladins! You even did the math!”

“I was prepared to leave!”

“I wasn’t going to let you!”

“Why not?! Maybe you should have let me! Maybe then I wouldn’t have had to deal with Shiro’s clone up my ass!”

Keith lost his concentration at Lance’s words, letting Lance get a little too close to landing a hit for Keith’s comfort. “Do you blame me for that?”

Lance paused. He lifted his sword, ready to strike. “Yes.”

Lance swung his sword in a way Keith hadn’t seen before. He concluded that when Lance showed off his skills with the bots in the training room, he must have been withholding some of his technique. But Lance wasn’t the only one who had a few tricks up his sleeve. Keith whistled, and suddenly Shadow appeared by his side, letting Keith touch her fur as she teleported away. Lance instantly felt Keith behind him, and his blade around his neck.

“You’re fighting dirty.”

“There’s no such thing.”

“Good to know.” Lance curled his foot back and hooked Keith’s ankle, yanking it forward and knocking Keith backwards. Keith hit the ground hard knocking the air out of him. He closed his eyes and gasped for breath. When he opened his eyes, he could see the gleam of Lance’s sword as it hovered above his neck. Keith’s eyes followed the blade up to see Lance standing over him. There wasn’t a hint of cheekiness about him. No gloating like Keith would expect from a victorious Lance.

Lance spoke first. “I won’t pull any stunts like that again if you promise not to try to sacrifice yourself either.”

The both of them were out of breath, but Keith managed to speak with a dry voice. “Do you really blame me?”

“Keith! Lance! What are you doing?” Lance lowered his sword at the sound of Allura’s voice. “We leave you two alone for a few dobashes and you’re off trying _to kill each other?!”_

“We were just... sparring.” Keith transformed his blade back, and Lance did the same with his bayard and held his hand out for Keith to help him stand.

Allura sighed. “Shiro’s awake, and we need to talk.”

Lance and Keith followed Allura in silence to a room with a round table - the Captain’s meeting room. Krolia was on her way out when she saw Keith. Lance and Allura went in ahead, letting Keith stay in the hall outside with his mother.

Krolia crossed her arms and leaned on the hallway wall. “So, what were you two doing this time?”

“Sparring.”

Krolia cleared her throat. ‘You know there are other ways to deal with your feelings than violence, right?”

“It’s worked before.”

“And how is it working for you now?”

Keith frowned, knowing Allura was about to make everyone talk about the elephant in the room. Lance had just admitted that he blamed him for everything, and nothing made him more nervous than having to talk it out. “I feel nauseous.”

“You’ll be fine, just - if you do hurl, try to find a bucket.”

Keith nodded. His mother wasn’t the most encouraging, but she meant well. He entered the conference hall with the other Paladins, leaving Krolia outside. Shiro was there, and Keith breathed relief seeing him awake again. His relief didn’t last, as he saw Lance sitting across from him. There was thankfully, a seat left between Allura and Shiro, but he’d have to look almost directly at Lance.

Allura rested her hands on the table as Keith sat down, her fingers intertwined together. “Captain Ulya graciously offered to shuttle us to the edge of the galaxy. During that time I’d like us to discuss what’s on everyone’s mind. Our latest fight proved to everyone what I’ve been afraid of since our first visit on this ship - We couldn’t form Voltron. And I think it’s because we as a team, our oneness has been challenged. The way we see each other, the way we connect has been damaged in a way, and we need to talk about it.” Allura looked over to Lance.

The paladins turned to face Lance, but it wasn’t the kind of attention he wanted. “Why are you all staring at me?” Lance kept his eyes glued to the table.

Hunk sighed. “Lance, we have to talk about it eventually.”

Lance scoffed. “You know we were doing just fine before everyone knew about me and Shiro’s clone and we can all continue going on just fine if we ignore it.”

Pidge leaned forward. “No you weren’t, Lance. You weren’t doing fine, and if you haven’t noticed, we can’t form Voltron now .”

“You act like you noticed I wasn’t fine to begin with.” Lance’s sharp tone made Pidge’s brow twitch.

She clenched her fists. “You kept hiding it from us! You were actively trying to deal with this alone! I thought we didn’t keep secrets from each other? How are you going to blame us for not noticing that you weren’t doing okay when you’re the one being all emo and not talking about it!”

Allura raised her palms up, trying to calm Pidge.

Lance sighed, soaking in Pidge’s words. “I’m sorry. I don’t- I don’t blame you for what happened, I just-”

“Then what is it? What do you blame us for?” Pidge breathed, and Hunk looked nervously at Lance.

“I just- ugh. What was I supposed to do? This- this situation… I-” Lance glanced over to Shiro, who had been silent, but was watching the interaction carefully. Lance fixed his eyes on the table again, but answered Pidge. “I didn’t want anyone to know about it because it makes me feel weak and helpless. I don’t want to be seen like that. I’ve been trying really hard to get stronger physically, but if I let myself get…” Lance stopped, and breathed. “I didn’t even want to admit that what he was doing was wrong at first. I didn’t even admit to myself that I had been… used. ” Lance spit the bad-tasting word out of his mouth, but continued. ”I felt like, if I let that happen to myself then I must be pitiful. So, I definitely didn’t want any of you to know about it because I was afraid that you’d know how pathetic I really am.”

Everyone was quiet for a moment. Shiro broke the silence. “You’re not pathetic, and it wasn’t your fault, Lance, and you shouldn’t try to handle this on your own.”

Lance tilted his head to the side. “It’s one thing to say that and another to believe it. I was so-” Lance paused to swallow the empty weight in his throat, forcing it into his chest so that that pain didn’t keep him from talking. “Shiro, you were my role model for a lot of reasons, and when it was all happening, deep down I knew it was wrong, but I didn’t want to believe that the person I idolized for so many years would hurt me. I was just glad you were even interested in me. Then when I found out you died, and that none of it was real, I felt stupid, like I should have known.”

Shiro was quick to console Lance. “You never could have known. Even Keith didn’t know it wasn’t me, and he’s known me for a long time.”

“I know that _logically_.”

“But you feel…?”

Lance sighed. “Gross.”

“You feel gross?” Shiro asked.

Lance nodded.

Keith wanted to tell Lance that he wasn’t gross, but what authority did he have to speak when it was _his_ fault that Lance was even in that situation?

Hunk faced Lance, determined. “We don’t think you’re gross, Lance. We’re your friends and you mean a lot to us.”

Lance smiled at Hunk, his good friend from the garrison. Seeing him serious like this, he knew he meant it.

Shiro spoke again, “The person to blame is Hagar for making Kuron do those things to you.”

Everyone looked at Shiro, some of them with tilted heads, and Shiro wasn’t quite sure what it was that he had said to make everyone look so confused.

Keith was the first to ask Shiro the question on everyone’s mind. “Who’s _Kuron?_ ”

Shiro raised his eyebrows, remembering he hadn’t told anyone yet. “That’s the name I gave to my clone.”

“You _named_ it?” Lance asked.

“Like… a pet?” Pidge pushed her glasses further up on her nose.

Shiro shrugged. “It’s easier to keep him separate from myself that way.”

“I mean, yeah but, like, it’s not that much harder to call it your clone,” Hunk pointed out.

Shiro sighed. “He said it would be easier if he had a name.”

“Wait-wait, wait. You- he-” Lance held his hands hovering above the table. “You _talked_ to him? He’s still alive?”

“He’s not alive but he does exist.”

“What does that even mean?” The agitation in Keith’s voice was clear as day.

“Look, I don’t know if I’m imagining him or if he really is trapped in this body with me but as far as I know harmless.”

Allura leaned in, worry sculpting her face. “Is there any reason for us to believe that he could try to... take over?”

Shiro shook his head. “He’s not under Hagar’s control anymore, and he keeps to himself unless I ask him to show up.”

“So you named him, and he only comes when you call? Sounds like a pet to me.” Pidge remarked.

Lance crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, thinking. “Shiro?”

Everyone looked at Lance, who again had his eyes fixed down.

“Yes?” Shiro answered Lance, to which Lance sat up and leaned back into the table, fixating a blank expression towards Shiro. He seemed indifferent, but Keith could see Lance was trying his best to hold it together.

“Does… does Kuron share his memories with you?”

Shiro ground his teeth together for a fragment of a second, wanting to hesitate and look away from Lance, but he chose to answer quickly. “No.” He blinked and looked down at the table, hoping Lance had looked away by now, but Lance’s piercing eyes were still staring right at him.

_“Are you sure?”_

“Positive.”

Lance bit his lip as his thoughts swirled around his head. “Is it possible that he could… run the show for a minute?”

“You don’t have to worry about that, Lance. I’d never let him take over. Consider him dead to the world.”

Lance shook his head. ‘That’s not what I meant. I’m asking if it’s _possible_. Like, could you do it?”

“Could I… _let him_ take over?”

“Yeah. If you wanted to.”

“Why would I... “ Shiro’s shoulders slumped when he realized what Lance was asking. “That’s a bad idea, Lance.”

“Just tell me if you _can_.”

“I don’t know, and I’m not going to try to find out.”

Keith scanned Lance in disbelief. “Wait, you _want_ to talk to Kuron?”

Lance held his arms to his body. “Yes. I want to talk to him.”

“Why would you want to talk to him?” Pidge asked.

Hunk also spoke, asking “Yeah, I don’t get it either, Lance why would you want to see him again? Didn’t he like, you know… abuse you?”

“I don’t know! Maybe I want some kind of- what’s the word?” Lance snapped his fingers a few times until he had the word. “Closure.”

 _“Closure?”_ Keith repeated. “If you’re looking to beat him up, please remember that the real Shiro is in there, too.”

“Look, I know you guys don't get it. I don’t want to beat him up or cuss him out or anything I just need to talk to him.”

Keith growled. _“And say what_ , exactly?”

Everyone’s doubt weighed heavily on Lance, but he had to try. “I just want some answers.”

Allura weighed in. “I don’t feel right about this, Lance.”

Lance knew he was surrounded by disapproval, but he wasn’t about to give up. “I’m not asking for alone time with him. If you’re all so worried, then confront him with me.”

“But Lance,” Hunk started, but Lance interrupted.

“Please. I need this.”

The air in the room was heavy as everyone sighed. Shiro thought for a moment.

“I’m not sure if I could even-”

“Could you try?”

“We _JUST_ got Shiro back, and now you want that- _that clone?_ ” Keith practically yelled at Lance.

Allura leaned forward, ignoring Keith’s comment and focusing on Lance. “It’s not a good idea for several reasons, Lance. Please remember that this body is not Shiro’s, it’s Kuron’s. Even if Shiro succeeds in letting his clone take control, if Kuron wants to stay after the allotted time there’s a chance he could subvert Shiro permanently. While I’m sure the connection to Hagar is cut, we can’t take the risk of allowing Kuron back to the forefront. We could lose Shiro - again.”

Lance nodded slowly.

Shiro frowned. “I’m sorry, Lance.”

“No, it’s okay I understand.”

Shiro drew in a long breath of air, clearing his mind and focusing before speaking again. “We need to work as a team, and that’s not going to happen if we keep arguing with each other, laying blame, and feeling guilty. So let’s make one thing clear. The only person responsible for this is Hagar, and she wanted to drive all of us apart. Before now, it was working, but we _can’t let her win._ The circumstances we were in left Lance the most vulnerable, but that doesn’t mean he’s any less of a teammate or that it was his fault. Are we clear?”

Everyone nodded.

“And _nobody’s_ talking to Kuron.” Keith added, looking at Shiro.

Lance nodded, but his mouth was twisted into a side-frown.

Hunk raised his hand gently, trying to get everyone’s attention. “I- I still feel bad about… contributing to this whole thing. I mean Lance was right about a few things. We really could have been better friends to you.”

“I already said I don’t blame you for-”

Hunk faced Lance. “Just let me say what I need to say.”

Lance nodded, allowing Hunk to finish.

Hunk continued. “We never asked if you were okay because you seemed confident, but we took your well being for granted. You’re our friend, and our teammate. I’m sorry this happened, and I hope you can forgive us. We love you.”

“Um,” Pidge started, and her voice seemed shaky. She breathed, but everyone could see a tear fall out of her eyes. “I’m- I’m sorry too, Lance. You’re funny and sometimes you’re cool, or whatever. Don’t get a big head.”

Lance chuckled softly. Pidge carried on. “I- I never imagined you were going through this, and I hate that this happened. You know I talk a lot of shit but yeah, we love you.”

Lance was smiling, and he wiped his eyes on his jacket sleeve, trying to pretend as if he wasn’t crying. “I love you guys, too. And- I forgive you both.”

Pidge and Hunk breathed a sigh of relief.

Allura breathed a short breath before speaking up. “Lance, I think very highly of you, and, well- I-” She swallowed. “I’m sorry.” her voice was deep with a lump in her throat. “I’m so sorry.” Allura repeated. She held her head down, but breathed in again, this time slowly, releasing her breath unevenly. “I know you say that you don’t blame me, but I brought you all into this war and-”

Keith placed his hand on Allura’s shoulder, and Lance reached his hand across the table, holding it out for Allura to grab on to. Lance squeezed her hand, letting her look up at him. “We were brought into this by destiny. Not by you. You’re not responsible for this.”

“But I was so _blinded_ by Lotor that I didn’t notice that you were-” Allura covered her mouth with her free hand, trying to keep herself from sobbing. Keith pat her back, not really sure of how to comfort her.

Lance sighed. “I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. Lotor fooled us all, and Hagar used that opportunity to get to me through Kuron. None of this was your fault, Allura. I don’t blame you, and you shouldn’t either.”

She nodded, and Lance released her hand, sitting back in his chair.

The room was silent, save for the sniffles of the Paladins who were crying.

Keith quit his awkward patting of Allura’s shoulder and noticed that Lance was looking at him, and then he turned to see that Pidge and Hunk were also staring at him. He blinked when he finally realized it was his turn to talk.

“Uh, so… I left.”

Lance nodded.

“And it was… _bad?_ ” The circle of paladins nodded. Keith looked like a deer caught in headlights. He breathed, trying to find his words. “I of all people should know what it’s like to be left behind - to feel like you have no one to talk to... and I did that to you, and to everyone when I left. I know what I was doing with the Blades of Marmora was helpful to the war, and that if I had never left, I never would have met my mom or found out about the other Alteans. But I- I should have been there for you, Lance. And I think- I know that you’re probably the first best friend I’ve had since Shiro. And this- this whole thing. I’m sorry. I missed you, and I should have been here. I know you blame me for everything, but please-”

Lance shook his head. “Keith, I don’t blame you. I know your mission was important, and I don’t hold it against you that you left. I said I blamed you because I didn't know how else to tell you how much it hurt. I shouldn’t have said it, and I’m sorry. This isn’t your fault at all, so just- just don’t leave again.”

“I won’t.”

Lance smiled.

The paladins seemed confused by the lack of context.

“We had another fight.” Lance explained, and a collective “Oh” followed suit.

Eyes turned to Shiro in the same manner as they had to Keith, who shrugged. “Don’t look at me, I was dead the whole time.”

The paladins couldn’t help but laugh, the tensions fleeing their bodies.

Lance couldn’t help but smile widely. “I love you guys.”

“I love you too.” Keith said. Pidge raised her eyebrow at Keith, who saw her making a face and quickly corrected himself. “I mean…” Keith cleared his throat. “We _all_ love you.” Despite his efforts, Keith could still see the grin plastered across Pidge’s face.

“Should we… hug? Or…?” Lance looked around the room sheepishly.

Hunk was the first to stand, and Lance stood to accept it. The other paladins followed after, and Lance felt warm. He was crying again, but he wasn’t afraid to cry in front of them anymore. They all breathed afterwards, wiping their faces and sniffling as they moved to leave the room.

Shiro saw Lance walking towards the hangar and caught up to him while everyone else went their separate ways through the ship.

“Hey, Lance? Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Yeah, sure. I was just heading to the Lions.”

Shiro nodded as they walked together, but he said nothing for several seconds.

“Are you sure you wanted to talk or….?”

“Sorry, what?”

“You haven’t said anything.”

“Yeah I’m sorry, I just wanted to be further away from the others because, this is kind of an embarrassing subject.”

“More embarrassing than knowing the person you looked up to your whole life watched a video of you getting fucked by his evil clone and you calling said evil clone _daddy?_ ”

Shiro breathed in sharply. “No, I guess not.”

“So what is it?”

The two of them stopped in between the Red and Black Lion.

Shiro crossed his arms. “I hate that of all the ways this could of happened, Hagar used _my_ face to hurt you, and I’m worried that this could happen again if you let yourself continue to believe the pattern of thinking that Kuron pushed on you.”

“I'll be fine. I understand that Kuron was using me.”

“That’s- I know. I also want you to know that I’d never hurt you, and whatever Kuron said to you to make you feel less than what you are is wrong.”

“That’s really easier said than done.”

“I know, but I’m worried because I hope you understand that being a little _rough_ … in bed is fine if it’s something you’re into, but aftercare is important.” Shiro kept trying to make eye contact with Lance, but Lance seemed almost afraid to look at his face for too long.

“Lance, I don’t want anyone degrading you without taking you out of that head-space afterwards. That becomes abuse and I’ve seen its effects on you.”

Lance chewed his bottom lip. “Why do you know so much about this stuff?”

“Oh. Uh- well I mean. I’ve read-”

Lance clicked his tongue. “Come on, Shiro. Admit it. You nasty.”

Shiro faked a cough, and laughed, looking away from Lance for the first time since the conversation started. He turned back to see that Lance facing him, giving him his full attention. “That is _besides the point._ ”

Lance laughed. “So you admit it?”

“Lance.” Shiro’s expression was stern. “Don’t change the subject.”

“Maybe you could show me what aftercare is like? I mean, as in- guide me. From time to time. If you want.”

Shiro squeezed his arms close to his body, as if somehow he could steel himself. “Oh, boy.” He whispered to himself. “Lance, we shouldn’t.“

Lance looked away, ashamed.

Shiro sighed. “It’s just that- it’s probably not healthy right now for me to- I’m exactly the same as Kuron looks-wise except for my arm and my hair and I don’t want to mess with your head right now. You _really_ need time to recover from all of this and I don’t think you have.”

“Are you saying that because you don’t want me?”

“That’s not it. It’s just not a good idea.”

“Then why not?” Lance closed the short distance between them, and placed his hand on Shiro’s shoulder and slid it down his chest. “This whole time I thought I was with the Real you, but it wasn’t. Show me the Real Shiro.”

Shiro took a step back, trying to hold his composure. “Lance, I’m sorry. But no.”

Lance kept his eyes focused on the ground. “Yeah, no that’s fine. I get it.”

Shiro hated seeing Lance look disappointed, but he knew it was for the best. He breathed out, keeping himself calm and clear-headed.

“Look. I need you to know that you’re worth much more than what you were used for.”

Lance tilted his jaw to the side. “Yeah, sure.”

“I’m sorry, Lance. I respect you too much and I’m afraid I would hurt you.”

Lance looked at Shiro, straightening himself up. “You… respect me?”

“Yes, of course.”

“If you respected me, you’d respect my choice.” Lance whined.

“And if you respect me, you’ll respect mine.”

Lance breathed out. “I know. I’m just- I’m used to feeling… needed.”

Shiro lifted Lance’s chin. “You _are_ needed, but you have to know that there’s more than one way of being needed in a relationship. Being needed only for sex is- I don’t want to treat you like that. I don’t want you to come to me and feel like I expect you to comfort me in a physical way.”

Lance squinted. “But are we in a relationship?”

Shiro opened his mouth to speak, but sighed instead. “Lance, I-”

Lance leaned in, waiting for an answer.

“Lance, I care so much about you, but it was my clone that did things to you things that-”

“Then undo the things he did.”

“I can’t undo them.”

“Shiro-”

“Lance!”

Lance whined. “Shiro I know I’m fucked up in the head, okay? I get it. But I’m not- I don’t know anything else. I don’t know how to move on. I have no idea where to begin. I don’t sleep well at night because I'm alone. I don't have anyone to that needs me the way Kuron needed me- he may not have done the lovey-dovey shit that you talk about but I didn’t care about that! I didn’t care how he treated me because at least he needed me! The real you doesn’t need me like he does!”

“He didn’t _need_ you Lance, he had an agenda to manipulate you to _feel_ like he needed you so that he could keep breaking you down!”

Lance frowned, his brows knit together. “You don’t know _shit!_ ”

Lance stormed off into the Red Lion, shutting the hatch as Shiro called out to him.

“Lance!”

“Leave me alone!” Lance plopped down into his seat at the helm. From his windshield he could see Shiro walking away. Lance placed his hands over his face and sobbed. He knew Shiro was right, but it was still hard to hear. He glanced over at the bottle of black sand Keith gave him.

“Keith…” Lance spoke without really thinking.

* * *

 

Keith stepped out into the hallway walked towards the hangar after the meeting. He needed some time with the black lion just to have something familiar to rest in. He reached the Lions and was about to get to the Black Lion when he saw Shiro and Lance standing by it, talking. Keith hid next to the Blue Lion and listened.

“I'll be fine. I understand that Kuron was using me.”

““That’s- I know. I only want you to know that I’d never hurt you, and whatever Kuron said to you to make you feel less than what you are is wrong.”

“That’s really easier said than done.”

“I know, but I’m worried because I hope you understand that being a little _rough_ … in bed is fine if it’s something you’re into, but aftercare is important." There was a pause, and from where Keith was, he couldn't see Lance. Shiro spoke again. "Lance, I don’t want anyone degrading you without taking you out of that head-space afterwards. That becomes abuse and I’ve seen its effects on you.”

“Why do you know so much about this stuff?”

“Oh. Uh- well I mean. I’ve read-”

Keith heard Lance click his tongue. “Come on, Shiro. Admit it. You nasty.”

Shiro faked a cough, and Keith could see Shiro flush pink behind his ears. Keith frowned, remembering Shiro would blush like that when he would flirt with his boyfriend from the garrison back on Earth.

Keith slinked away silently from the Lions, not wanting to hear anymore.

As Keith walked down the hallways of the large ship, Pidge pulled him aside, dragging Hunk along with them into a storage closet.

“What’s this about?” Keith asked after a broom hit him in the face.

“You know what this is about,” asserted Pidge.

“Wait, Pidge even _I_ don’t know what this is about,” Hunk tried to whisper, but with them being in a small room, Keith could hear clearly what Hunk was saying.

Pidge smiled and crossed her arms contently. “Keith likes Lance.”

Keith had to act quick. “Yeah, of course I like Lance. We all like Lance. Lance is a pretty cool dude. What’s _not_ to like about him? I mean, he’s our friend.”

“You know what I mean, Keith.”

Hunk observed the way Keith rubbed the back of his neck, and the way his face was growing pinker by the second. “No way.” Hunk’s jaw dropped.

“I-I have literally no idea what you’re talking about.” Keith could feel his calm appearance slipping. All the interrogation training from the Blades and he couldn’t hold it together. He wanted to kick himself.

“ _Keith._ ” Hunk smiled, elbowing Keith. “You like Lance, don’t you?”

Keith held his lips together and his weight shifted to one foot. “Um.”

“I knew it!” Pidge cackled.

“Oh my god!” Hunk smiled and held the sides of his face with his hands in disbelief.

“Stop! Don’t- don’t tell him. And stop laughing!”

Pidge sighed and collected herself before answering Keith. “We’re not going to tell him, what kind of people do you take us for?”

“Gremlins.”

“You may have a point, But! I promise we won’t tell Lance.”

“Good. Are we done here?"

Hunk had a question burning inside him. “So wait, Shiro is gay, Lance is… bi? that's some kind of gay, and you’re gay too?”

“No, I’m a flaming heterosexual.”

Hunk blinked at Keith’s deadpan face. “That’s sarcasm isn’t it?”

“They _do_ travel in herds” Pidge whispered.

Hunk placed his hand on his chin as he began to contemplate this new information. “I mean, I guess it makes sense since Shiro is gay, and you would always hang out with him… so you being gay really isn’t that far fetched.”

“Shiro’s not the reason I’m gay.”

Pidge snorted. “Are you sure about that? I mean, have you _seen_ him?”

Keith opened his mouth to say something along the lines of being gay isn't contagious and just because someone is gay doesn't mean that the people around them are going to also turn gay, but after a short second of rethinking his life on Earth spent goggling Shiro, he sighed. “Okay yeah, Shiro’s the reason I’m gay.”

“Yeah I figured.”

“He’s just- got those… _muscles,_ you know? And now It’s just- like it’s weird okay? I’ve grown up having a crush on Shiro but like you said, _who hasn’t._ But I really like Lance, and when I found out that Lance was in his unhealthy relationship with Shiro’s clone it was really awful because that means on top of dealing with the trauma of that he probably also still has lingering feelings for Shiro even if he knows that it was Kuron the whole time.”

Pidge nodded slowly. “But wait, _do you_ still like Shiro?”

“Who doesn’t like Shiro?” Keith laughed nervously, but stopped to say, ‘I can’t live without him.”

“Well at least Shiro doesn’t like Lance back,” offered Hunk.

“I’m not so sure about that. I think I saw them… flirting. ”

“Dude,” Hunk half-laughed with his words. “You’re fucked.”

“I know! Ugh!”

“Does anybody else find the fact that they’re flirting super weird?” asked Pidge.

“Well, I mean- yeah?” Keith’s voice was unsure.

Hunk squinted as he thought. “Yeah, that is weird I mean, Lance liking Shiro makes sense. He’s secretly been physically and emotionally attached to Shiro’s clone for months, but Shiro’s literally been dead for most of that time and he pops out the astral plane and flirts with _Lance?_ Like no offense to Lance but …why?”

“Ehh,” said Pidge, formulating various scenarios. “Do you think Shiro was lying when he said he and Kuron didn’t share memories?”

“Why would that make any difference?” Asked Hunk.

Pidge thought for a moment. “Doesn’t it concern you that Kuron still exists? Even if Shiro says he’s safe, what if Kuron actually liked Lance, and still wants to… you know-”

“No, if Shiro is attracted to someone he always acts the same. I saw him with Lance and it was definitely Shiro. Lance is just… more outgoing than me.” Keith admitted. “He flirts so easily and I’m like- my best weapon is the occasional sarcasm and that’s not exactly attractive. I mean, I totally get why Shiro would like Lance, I mean, I like him too.”

Pidge and Hunk shared a look.

“Come on, don’t get down on yourself. Your sarcasm is funny… when it’s not hurtful.” said Hunk.

Pidge chimed in. “Yeah, you’re- you’re- you’ve got that bad boy charm. I think.”

“You think?”

“I'm pretty sure that’s why Lance likes you.”

“Wait- you think Lance likes me?”

Pidge and Hunk grinned. “Yep! He talks about you all the time when you’re not around. He says things like, _'Keith is SO handsome and cool and his face is so pretty and he looks so manly and grizzled.'_ " Hunk giggled.

Pidge snorted. "And- and he says, _'I fantasize about running my hands through Keith's mullet'_ "

Keith frowned. “He never said that.”

When the two of them stopped giggling to themselves, Pidge cleared her throat to be serious. “So, who are you going to go after? Lance or Shiro?”

“I, uh- I like them both?”

“But who are you going to _pursue?_ ” Hunk stressed.

“Lance? Or maybe Shiro because he laughs when I tell jokes? But Lance is hot... But Shiro’s muscles. I mean the guy is a dreamboat. And Lance is dealing with emotional stuff… But Shiro is also probably still dealing with emotional stuff I mean he’s been dead this whole time that’s gotta mess with you. Another thing, Lance likes girls so maybe Shiro was the exception as far as how gay he’ll get and maybe he's just not that into me.”

Pidge grabbed Keith by shoulder and lowered him to her eye level. “Make up your mind!”

Keith grunted. “Do I have to, though?”

Pidge let go of Keith. “Yes!”

Keith held his hand on his hips. “I know Shiro’s a pretty open-minded guy, and Lance- I have a feeling he’s pretty flexible.”

Hunk’s brows were knit together. “Do- do you mean he’s flexible as in…”

Pidge placed her hand on Hunk’s arm. “Don’t ask that.”

Hunk nodded, then posed another thought. “You said that Lance likes Shiro, so if you go after Shiro, won’t that kind of break Lance’s heart?”

“I didn’t really think about it like that.”

Pidge placed her hand on her chin. “Yeah and Lance seems to like you a lot but if he’s flirting with Shiro maybe you shouldn’t go after Lance either.”

Keith groaned. “Y’all are right.”

Hunk sighed. “Okay, you gotta stop saying ‘y’all’.”

“I probably wasn’t going to act on it anyway.” Keith slumped.

Hunk grunted, holding Keith by the shoulders and putting on an air of drama. “You’re the Black Paladin, dammit! You’re our leader! If you can’t do something as simple as follow your heart then how are we supposed to put our faith in you?!” Hunk shook Keith violently until Pidge stopped him.

“That’s enough!”

Keith squirmed out of Hunk’s grasp and regained his balance. “You’re right Hunk. I have to try.”

Keith stepped past them in the cramped supply closet, walking out into the hallway as the other two fumbled to leave as well, but Keith moved too quickly for them to see where he had gone once they managed to tumble out of the tiny door.

Keith marched through the hallway towards the Lions. He slowed down, remembering how Shiro blushed with Lance. “They’re probably fucking already," Keith said to himself out loud.

“Who’s fucking?”

Keith turned to see Lance standing beside him. “Oh- uh, nobody.”

Lance stepped forward without saying a word, his eyes fixated on Keith.

“What- what’s up?” Keith asked cautiously as Lance got dangerously close to Keith’s face.

“I know I said earlier that I blamed you for what happened, but even if I said I was sorry, I feel bad about it.” Lance's voice dragged slightly.

“Don’t even worry about it, Lance. We were fighting, tensions were high, I’ve already forgiven you.”

“Let me... _make it up to you._ I won’t feel truly forgiven unless I do.”

Keith gulped. Lance’s eyes were half-lidded like something straight out of Keith’s wet dreams and his voice was soaked with desire.

“H-how? I mean, not that you need to-” Lance kissed Keith gently, cutting him off. “You just kissed me.” Keith mumbled, staring at Lance.

Lance grabbed Keith by the collar and dragged him down the hallway, saying nothing.

“You- Lance. This- this is- where are we going?” Keith stuttered, but Lance was silent. They reached a small door in the hallway, and Lance opened it to shove Keith in before following him inside.

“Oh, this is the supply closet again. What are we doing in- oh my god.”

Lance was up close to Keith again just as the door shut behind them. Lance wrapped his hands around Keith’s back and grabbed fistfuls of Keith’s hair, pulling him into an intense kiss, Lance’s tongue licking playfully at Keith’s lips until Keith opened his mouth. He found himself twirling his tongue with Lance’s, and wondered if any of this was real. Keith’s thoughts of doubt washed away as Lance bit his lower lip.

Lance smirked as he slid his hand down Keith’s chest, then to his abdomen, and as Keith realized where Lance’s hand was going, he flushed red and stared at Lance in disbelief.

Keith inhaled as Lance rubbed his dick over his clothes. This was happening. It was really happening. Keith’s thoughts ran through his head in short sentences, slowly losing the capacity to think. He could feel Lance reaching for the zipper at the front of his suit and alarms started going off in his head.

“Lance,” Keith whispered. His voice low and his breaths quicker now than they were before. “You don’t have to do this.”

“Do you want me to stop?” Lance asked as he slid the zipper down its track.

Keith shook his head. He didn’t want this to stop. He loved this. The little alarms in his head started fading and were replaced by desires demanding to be met.

The zipper went down easily enough, and soon Keith’s chest, abdomen, and hips peaked through the opening in his suit. Lance didn’t waste much time sliding his hand down Keith’s stomach, down into the fabric of his underwear.

“Ah…” Keith moaned, feeling Lance touch him. He was getting harder, and Lance leaned in close to Keith, moving his hand slightly faster.

“Do you want me?” Lance whispered.

Keith nodded, his jaw slack and his mouth open as he gently thrust his hips forward into Lance’s hand, trying to get more friction.

“Say it.” Lance’s voice was low, and it dripped with intention.

“I want you.”

Lance smiled, and slowly moved down, kissing Keith on his neck, then his chest, and all the way down until he was kneeling on the floor. Keith looked down at Lance’s pretty hair. There Lance was, face in front of Keith’s hips, tugging down his suit just enough to free him completely.

“Oh my god,” Keith said to himself as he watched Lance lick his dick like a popsicle. Lance looked up at Keith, and his eyes were so beautifully fixated on Keith that he almost believed he was dreaming - until Lance introduced Keith’s head to his tongue, swiping across and around it.

Keith breathed out a moan, and Lance chuckled proudly before filling his mouth.

The feeling was so warm and wet. Lance slid his mouth down, bobbing gently.

Keith bit his lip, and suddenly Lance lifted his mouth off of Keith and smiling. Keith eyed the trail of saliva mixed with precum connecting Lance’s mouth to his tip. He looked so hot, but he secretly wished his mouth was around him again.

“Did that feel good, Keith?”

Keith nodded, unable to form words. Lance swirled his tongue on Keith’s tip again, and Keith managed to think of something to say.

“You’re so fucking good at that.”

Lance hummed at the praise, then slid Keith back into his mouth.

Keith let his head roll back on his neck, breathing out a long sigh as Lance went down on him. He looked back down in time to see Lance force Keith to the back of his throat, and Keith gasped softly as Lance’s throat gurgled. He placed his hands in Lance’s hair, gripping his fists into it and holding the short tufts like handlebars. Lance pulled back enough to breathe, and he sucked Keith, hollowing out his cheeks before Keith pulled him in close again, this time thrusting forward into Lance’s face desperately. Lance took Keith until his lips were almost flush with Keith’s hips, his throat making choking noises. Keith pulled Lance’s head back, letting him breathe for a moment. Lance’s face was red, his lips were swollen, and there were tears on the corner of his eyes and his mouth drooled.

“Oh fuck” Keith whispered. Lance placed his hands at the base of Keith’s dick, and slid them up and down, twisting them as he sucked Keith’s head.

“Fuck fuck fuck” Keith repeated to himself. He was getting closer, and he thrusted forward into Lance’s hands and mouth.

“Lance- Lance!” Keith mumbled Lance’s name like a quiet prayer as he got closer to cumming, and he held Lance’s hair for dear life as he came, shutting his eyes as he found his release. Lance swallowed Keith’s cum, then licked drops of his chin. Keith stood above Lance, and his head started to clear.

“Lance.” Keith leaned back against the shelves of the supply closet, trying to use anything as support. Lance stood, revealing drops of cum staining his shirt. Keith caught his breath, then cleared his throat.

“You just sucked my dick.”

Lance chuckled softly, still trying to catch his breathing. “Yeah,” he huffed. "i did."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the Shklance train kids take a fucking seat. First stop: Klance. Next stop: CRIPPLING DEPRESSION
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you everyone who commented and left Kudos! I really appreciate it. I was on vacation for a week so I'm sorry if I didn't reply to everyone.


	3. Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor decisions have been made. Kuron warns and challenges Shiro, guiding him like the conscience he never wanted. The Paladins learn a lesson on trust.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How about that season 7 huh? Talk about crippling depression.  
> Let's leave that shit at the door.  
> Welcome back to the shklance party boat (idk it's a party boat now)  
> We're sailing over the waters of our own tears and I will go down with this ship.

Shiro held his palm on the closed hatch of the Red Lion, having been cussed at by a rejected Lance.

 _“You really smoothed that one over, didn’t you?”_ There he was again, Kuron.

Shiro frowned, hearing his own voice but knowing it wasn’t himself. He spoke aloud, “I don’t remember calling for you.”

_I told you I’d be watching if you did anything stupid._

“I didn’t _do_ anything stupid.” Shiro stepped away and walked out of the hangar, deciding he needed to give Lance some space.

_Oh, really? Let’s make a list, shall we? First, you lied to Lance about the fact that you do remember some of the things I’ve done and that you will probably remember more as time goes on. Then, you sought him out to try to talk to him when you of all people should know that he still has feelings for you. THEN, when he expressed to you how he feels unwanted - you yelled at him. And now you’re walking away._

“Lance needs his space.”

_What Lance needs is therapy._

“Oh, sorry. Do _you_ know any deep-space psychologists with an open schedule? Maybe you can recommend me to someone, too.” Shiro said, sarcastically. He found an empty spot near a window overlooking the galaxy as the ship moved further from Erashon’s system. He closed the door in the lounge, not wanting anyone to hear him talking to himself.

_Listen, Shiro- what I’m saying is that Lance probably needs some stability and someone to talk to._

“Well, when it comes to stability, I can’t promise that. We’re in a war. Everything’s unstable. But, he can talk to me any time.” Shiro sat down, pulling several small objects from his pocket: A pen, a ball, and a few coins.

_But are you sure he know that?_

Shiro surveyed the objects, deciding which one to start with. He answered Kuron. “I’m sure he does.” Shiro concentrated on picking up the pen with his new prosthetic.

Kuron sighed in Shiro’s head. S _hiro, that boy has spent months being told he isn’t worth more than what his body can do and-_

“That’s _exactly_ why I let him down. He’s not ready for a sexual relationship.” His hand grasped the pen first, but it fell out of his fingers like an arcade game prize.

_You don’t understand, Shiro. Hagar is a master at getting into people’s heads. You of all people should know this. And the things I said to him- the things I’ve made him do. If he can’t get attention and validation from you, he’s going to get it from somewhere else._

“If he wants to lean on his team members for comfort I’m not going to stop him.” Again, Shiro attempted to pick the pen off the lounge table in front of him. He held it for a moment, but it slipped away and fell to the table with a few light taps.

_I’m not talking about a friendly bonding moment Shiro, I’m talking about sexual attention. He just flat out offered himself to you - something he’s never tried with the real you - and you rejected him. I mean, rightly so, but you really could have handled it better._

“I think I handled it just fine.” Shiro hummed, trying to pick up the pen again.

_“He’s liked you for years, Shiro. And he’s been hungry for validation. How do you think he feels right now?_

Shiro chewed his lip, getting the pen off the table, his fingers shaking as he concentrated on holding it. “He probably feels worthless.”

_Bingo! And let’s remember that he is especially fragile right now so let’s play a game of ‘What Would Lance Do, shall we?_

Shiro finally got a proper grip. Kuron continued. _Lance, who has just been rejected, feels unwanted. What Would Lance Do, Shiro? Take a wild guess._

“He’d try to find some way to feel needed or wanted.” Shiro kept his grip on the pen, holding it tightly.

_...and if he truly believes that his best qualities lie in the bedroom what do you think he’s going to try to do?_

Shiro’s thoughts began to run quickly through his head as it all came together. His hand shook as his grip on the pen grew tighter.

“You’re saying he’s going to try to seduce someone.” The pen in Shiro’s hand broke in two pieces, black ink spilling on his hand.

_Now that you understand, Shiro… are you really going to let someone else have Lance right now? In his vulnerable state, he’s probably willing to do anything - and anyone. If the right person finds him right now, he won’t say no._

Shiro dropped the broken pieces of the pen and stood.

“I’m sure he’s fine. I’ll just… I’ll go check on him.” Shiro picked up his objects from the table and left the room, heading to the Lions. His pace was quick, but he tried to keep calm, not letting thoughts of panic cloud his judgement.

He reached the Red Lion and knocked.

“Lance? Are you in there? I need to talk to you.”

Silence.

_He’s not in there._

Shiro walked around to the front of the Red Lion, trying to see through the eyes.

_Shiro, he’s not in there._

Shiro jogged over to the Black Lion and entered it without issue. He stood in the cockpit and closed his eyes, searching for Lance’s presence in the Red Lion.

_Shiro, you’re doing really well not to panic, but at this point you should be doing everything you can to find him. He’s not in the Red Lion and you know it._

Shiro grunted, not sensing Lance nearby. “Dammit.”

* * *

 

Hunk and Pidge moved about the kitchen following the cook who had promised a tour, while Allura and her mice sat with the Captain in the empty dining hall. The kitchen overlooked the hall, and Allura and the Captain sipped tea as they watched Hunk, Pidge, and the cook scuttle about.

“It was kind of your cook to offer to show Hunk and Pidge around the kitchen,” Allura said, smiling fondly at her teammates. The mice munched on a cookie treat on the table quietly, courtesy of Captain Ulya.

“It’s no problem at all. She loves company, and she admires the paladins of Voltron as we all do.” Captain Ulya glanced over the mice.

“So are these your pets?”

Allura smiled, setting her teacup on the table. “They’re much more than pets. I think of them as my friends. We have a sort of telepathic connection, and they’ve helped me get out of countless binds.”

The Captain smiled at them, waving. “They’re quite cute.”

Allura breathed out slowly. The Captain’s presence, combined with the tea and the background noise of Hunk and Pidge having fun was all so calming. She almost forgot she was in a war. “Captain Ulya, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

“Ask away.” The Captain picked up her tea cup and blew on softly to cool it.

“Your cannons - you mentioned you get most of your weapons from Erashon, and they’re all battleship class.”

Captain Ulya smiled. “You want to know if the Galra showed up to Erashon because of _Voltron_ or because of _us_.”

Allura nodded. The mice looked to the Captain, waiting for her response.

Captain Ulya set her tea down. “We were once a simple cargo-class crew, carrying goods to and from the different swap moons that the Galra had turned into their malls. This particular vessel was also meant to shuttle our overseers: low-ranking officers stationed at the various moons. You’ll notice we have several lounge and entertainment facilities- although we’ve re-purposed the entertainment rooms to hold more guns.”

The Captain’s eyes fixed on the table, her brows knit together as if remembering something awful. “We didn’t have it as bad as others, but I was tired of not having my freedom. When Zarkon fell, and the first power struggle began throwing the empire in disarray, we took our chance and revolted against our oppressors. It was a difficult fight, but since then, we’ve collected many weapons and done things on our own. We may not have much, but at least we are free.”

Allura nodded, and the Captain sighed.

“Now that Lotor is also gone, there’s another power vacuum. The Galra officials with any semblance of an army are going to try to conquer little parts of the empire for themselves, and those who can’t defeat another Galra fleet will force their conquest on back-alley planets like Erashon.”

“So was the attack on Erashon simply _random?_ ”

Captain Ulya shook her head. “No, I think whoever was at the helm of that battleship had enough sense to know that Erashon is a black market hub with a history of trafficking Galra tech.”

Allura nodded. “And what do you plan to do after we reach the edge of the Galaxy? Will you stay in this quadrant?”

The Captain paused, gazing off into the distance as if calculating her next move. “I’ll have to discuss with my crew what they’ll want to do, but I’m hoping I can persuade them to join the fight. With Lotor now gone, things will only get worse. I’d like for us to head for Olkarion to join the resistance, and any who don’t want to stay will be dropped off on Erashon with their due pay. I can’t force anyone to risk their lives.”

“I have a feeling this crew would follow you anywhere.”

“I figure the same for you. Your paladins - they depend on you.”

“We depend on each other.”

The Captain smiled. _“Tell me about them.”_

“Keith is the current leader of Voltron as he flies the Black Lion, but the paladins are all equally important.”

“Yes, when Geno first hailed Keith he did so because it was the Black Lion, but we were all surprised to learn that you, Princess Allura, was not the Black Lion’s pilot.”

“That’s quite the compliment, but please understand that the Black Lion chooses its pilot, not the other way around. The other paladins look up to Keith, and to Shiro.”

The Captain nodded. “The Lions chose well. I see how they all have their qualities about them.” Captain Ulya and Allura looked to Hunk and Pidge, who were in the middle of cooking up something with the chef.

Allura smiled. “I’m very proud of them.”

The Captain and Allura sat in silence for a moment as Hunk and Pidge laughed loudly in the other room.

The Captain tapped her foot. “Forgive me for being a gossip, but it is my understanding that one or two of your paladins are in a relationship with one another. Does that affect the operations of Voltron?”

Allura nearly coughed up her drink. “Pardon?”

“When we first met, Shiro, Keith, and Lance seemed to be arguing about something regarding who was fuc-”

“Ah, yes.” Allura interrupted Ulya, not wanting to hear another ‘f bomb’- or as Pidge explained to her, ‘the fuck word.’ Allura cleared her throat gently. “We never did apologize for that. I hoped it didn’t make you uncomfortable to know that the paladins were arguing.”

“It’s no matter, but whatever it was that they were arguing about, I can’t help but wonder if it altered the paladins ability to form Voltron.” Captain Ulya eyed Allura curiously before speaking again. “We all noticed that the lions did not come together to form Voltron like we’d heard they would.”

Allura breathed, wanting to sigh, but she knew it would be impolite. “Yes, we could not form Voltron. We were dealing with a disconnect of sorts. We’ve had a meeting since then, but there’s no way to tell unless we really concentrate to meld our minds together, and we haven’t tried.”

“If you don’t mind me asking why?”

“Mind melding is easy enough once everyone can focus, but with everything that’s happened, we’re working through something right now- something that involves one of our paladins. He said he has forgiven us, but if I’m honest even _I_ still have fears clouding my own mind, and I don’t want to put us through that just yet.”

“If it is guilt that worries you, and he has already forgiven you verbally, then won't addressing it in the mind-space will make it better?”

“Yes, perhaps.”

“We have some time before we reach the edge of the system. If the paladins need help getting into a mind meld, we do have something that might do the trick.”

“What exactly?”

“It’s no secret that the Galra have the technology to extract someone’s memories, but a modified version of it could allow for several people to meditate together to connect with each other in a mind meld much easier.”

“And you have it?”

“We’ve been looting the remnants of Galra ships for a while now and we’ve got our hands on anything and everything Galra.”

“Did I hear the words _modify_ and _Galra technology?_ ” Hunk’s voice from the kitchen caught Allura and Ulya slightly off guard, but they smiled.

“Pidge and Hunk are some of the brightest minds I’ve ever had the honor of knowing,” explained Allura. "Hunk here can take apart and reassemble anything, and Pidge can get into any system she wants."

"How impressive." The Captain said, smiling.

Hunk smiled. Pidge grinned with her hands on her hips. “Thanks Allura. Now, what is this about a mind meld?”

Just then, Shiro stepped into the dining hall, somewhat panicked and a little out of breath. “Has anybody seen Lance?”

“I haven’t seen him since we had our meeting,” said Pidge.

“Perhaps he’s in the Red Lion?” Allura offered.

“I just checked there.”

Allura’s brows furrowed as Shiro seemed to be getting more worried. “Is something the matter, Shiro?”

“I’m sure he’s fine, I just- I need to know he’s okay." Shiro looked around the room, his eyes landing on the Captain. "Captain Ulya, how many people are in your crew?”

The Captain didn’t hesitate. “We are twenty not including myself. Twenty-one in all. We’re a small crew to be manning this size a ship, but we make do.”

“Could you make an announcement to bring everyone here?”

Captain Ulya was silent, and Allura strained a smile. “Shiro, everything’s all right. Lance is on the ship. There’s no need to flush everyone out just to find him.”

“No you- You don’t understand. I need to make sure Lance is _alone_ right now.”

“But Shiro-” Allura started.

“Captain Ulya,” Shiro addressed the Captain again, “you said you’d do anything to help Voltron, is that right? Right now I need _every_ soul in your crew in this dining hall as soon as possible.”

Captain Ulya took a step forward, holding her chin high. “I’ll have everyone report for roll-call.”

“Thank you, Captain Ulya. _Thank you_.”

As the Captain moved towards a small screen near the entrance to the hall, Shiro looked around the room, biting his knuckle as he bounced slightly.

Allura stepped closer to Shiro. “Shiro what’s wrong?”

“I think Lance is going to try to…” Shiro trailed off, his eyes fixed on the door hoping that at any minute, Lance would walk in.

“Try to _what?”_

“I just need to find him and make sure he’s alone.” Shiro said nervously.

Krolia stepped into the room as the Captain made the announcement. She walked over to the group as the intercom echoed throughout the ship.

“Has anyone seen Keith?” Krolia asked, looking around.

“He’s not here,” said Hunk.

“How long has it been since you’ve seen him?” Asked Krolia.

Pidge smirked. “He left us to go find Shiro and Lance.”

Shiro breathed a sigh of relief, and he mumbled to himself. “If they're together, Lance is safe.”

Kuron doubted Shiro’s conviction. _“Are you sure about that?”_

‘What is this about, Shiro?” Hunk asked. “I mean, like I get you’re worried about Lance but we’re on a ship in the middle of space. There aren’t that many places he could go.”

Shiro nodded, but Kuron continued to knock at the corner of Shiro’s mind. _“Lance is very good at finding hidden rooms”_

“I’ll be back. I just have to look for him.” Shiro walked quickly to the door, leaving the dining hall as the first members of the crew poured in.

* * *

 

There was noise out in the hallway that sounded like a voice on an intercom, but Keith and Lance couldn’t understand what was said from inside the supply closet. Keith’s hair was disheveled, and his suit was still unzipped, and he wasn’t sure what to do with his hands.“You sucked my dick.”

Lance gave a short laugh through his nose. “You said that already.” Lance noticed the drops of cum his shirt and pouted. “Oof. That’s not gonna wash out.”

Keith was still in shock, but as blood began circulating in his head again, he remembered what he’d told Hunk and Pidge earlier.  “I like you,” he blurted. “I like you, a lot.”

Lance looked Keith up and down. “Is it because I sucked you off? Because if you want a little sugar with that spice you don’t have to _pretend_ that-”

“What? No. Lance, I liked you before you- before you sucked my dick.” Keith paused. “Holy quiznak _you sucked my dick_ ” Keith ran his hand up his forehead, pushing his hair out of his face as he looked to the ceiling.

“You keep saying that.” Lance said, leaning against the wall besides one of the shelves.

“Because you _Sucked My Dick._ ”

“And I’m _already_ regretting it. God, if I’d known you were gonna gloat like this-”

“Wait-wait. I’m sorry okay? I’m not gloating- or maybe I am. I don’t know you just- _YOU SUCKED MY DICK.”_ Keith paused to breathe. “Just give me a second to freak out.”

“Why are you freaking out?”

“I don’t know,” Keith places both his hands on his face, swiping down as he processed. “There are _so_ many things wrong with this.”

Lance frowned. “Was it really that bad?”

“What? No! I loved it. You’re very- uh… _talented?_ ”

“Yeah I know.” Lance grinned, somewhat proudly. Keith tried to keep his head clear of dark thoughts, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Did… Kuron teach you how to do that?”

Lance frowned. “What kind of question-”

Keith shook his head. “Never mind, I'm sorry. It’s just. I’m surprised, is all."

Lance smiled. "A good kind of surprised?"

Keith nodded.

"Then what are you worried about?"

"I thought I saw you…” Keith remembered seeing Shiro blush around Lance.

“Saw me _what?_ ”

“I thought I saw you flirting with Shiro earlier.”

“Oh.” Lance lifted his arms to his chest, rubbing the sides of his arms. "You... heard all that?"

“No, I left... but mostly because I just figured you liked Shiro and I didn't want to interrupt.”

Lance stayed silent. Keith took the time to adjust himself back into his suit, but just before he could finish zipping up his suit, Lance's hand stopped him. Keith gasped softly. Lance was smiling, his long lashes blinking slowly.

"I'm not done with you, yet. I'm just giving you a few minutes to rest."

“Why are you.. Uh… What made you want to- _you know_...”

“Because I want to.” Lance whispered, moving closer to Keith. ‘...because I like you.”

Keith bit his lip. “Can we… can we see each other? After this? As in… be my boyfrie-”

Just then, the doorknob began to turn. Lance pushed Keith back, and Keith was quick to hide. The door opened just as Keith settled down behind a shelf holding several boxes filled with supplies.

“Lance? There you are. What are you doing in here? I’ve been looking for you!”

Keith recognized Shiro’s voice. He covered his mouth, trying to hide the sound of his breathing.

“Oh, I was just-”

“Lance, I’ve been thinking about what you’ve said. You’re right- you need guidance. I know it’s strange that Kuron and I have the same face, but if you’re willing to trust me, I won’t break that trust.”

Lance was silent, and Keith’s heartbeat raced as he listened, crouched down behind several boxes on the shelf in front of him.

“What do you say, Lance?”

Lance didn't say anything.

"Lance?"

“Do you want to be with me because _you like me_ or because you think it's your responsibility to protect me?”

“I care about you, Lance. You're special to me, and it's _because_ I care about you I want to make sure you’re okay.”

Lance said nothing for a moment, and Keith waited anxiously for something - anything to happen.

“Kiss me, so I know you mean it.”

Keith’s eyes widened as he heard the two of them kiss. His thoughts raced through his head.

Lance was kissing Shiro _knowing_ that Keith had just told him that he liked him. And Lance had said that he liked him, too. Was it a lie? Keith’s feelings of rejection began to settle in just as Shiro and Lance broke away from each other.

“Lance, tell me _right now_ who’ve you been with.”

Lance frowned. “What are you talking abou-”

“I know that’s not toothpaste on your shirt, Lance. And you taste like…”

Lance was panicking, and he laughed nervously. “Taste like _what?_ ”

Shiro looked around the room. Lance pulled Shiro close to him, kissing him again and bringing him further into the supply closet so that the door shut behind Shiro.

“Lance, stop” Shiro said between kisses.

 _“You know what you’re tasting, Shiro?”_ Kuron’s voice whispered in the back of Shiro’s mind like an irritating conscience. _“That’s another man’s cum.”_ Shiro’s blood boiled as he pushed Lance off of him and looked around the room.

Lance shivered, his eyes wide as he watched Shiro glance around. “Shiro, what’s wrong?”

“Who was it?!” Shiro shouted, pulling boxes off of shelves. “A crew member? _Who_ , Lance?!” The thought that someone would take advantage of Lance _again_ was infuriating.

_Shiro calm down._

"Did they make you do it?"

"What- Shiro no!"

Keith wanted to close his eyes as Shiro began pulling boxes off the shelf where Keith was hiding.

“Shiro! _Stop!_ I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Lance whimpered.

“They put their _filthy dick_ in your **_mouth_** and when I find out who did this,” Shiro said with a growl. "I'm going to-

Lance’s heart raced, knowing that Shiro was reaching for the box that covered Keith’s face. “Shiro what kind of person do you take me for?!” Shiro stopped, his hand halfway pulling the last box off the shelf. Keith calmed his breathing as Shiro looked back at Lance.

“Lance, it’s not about what kind of person I think _you_ are. Right now you’re not thinking straight and anyone who would-”

“You think I’m a whore, don’t you?”

_Don’t fall for it, Shiro._

Shiro let go of the box he was holding, leaving it to teeter on the edge of the shelf. “What? No, I-”

“You do. You think I’m a _disgusting_ _whore_ that would just throw myself at the first person I see, _don’t you?”_

“No, I don’t. Lance, I-” Shiro clenched his fist.

Kuron warned Shiro again. _Don’t believe him._

Shiro sighed, ignoring Kuron. “I’m sorry. I should have more faith in you, Lance. I guess I just want to protect you and... I got paranoid.” Shiro lifted his hand to Lance’s face, caressing it gently.

_He’s lying to your face, Shiro. The signs are all around you._

The way Lance pushed his face into the palm of Shiro’s hand was telling - Lance had been starved for soft affection. He watched Lance settle close into his touch, and Shiro wrapped his arm around Lance’s waist, ignoring all of Kuron’s protests.

Keith watched from behind the shelf - the way Lance fit so perfectly against Shiro was mesmerizing - and heartbreaking. He sighed, and suddenly the box covering his face tipped over the edge of the shelf and fell to the ground, letting several tools and cleaning supplies fall out with a clang.

Shiro looked over, and in between the shelves, Shiro’s eyes made contact with Keith’s.

“ _Keith?_ ” Shiro squinted in disbelief, hoping, praying that his eyes were not as good as they used to be and that it wasn’t Keith crouched behind the shelf like some guilty criminal.

“You’ve _got_ to be fucking kidding me.”

* * *

 

Keith and Lance sat apart in the dining room, and Shiro stood nearby, apologizing to the Captain as her crew left to go back to their stations. Some griped about having to follow orders from strangers, others settled for dirty looks. The Captain turned to Allura. “I must meet with Geno. There’s something I need to discuss with him.”

“Of course.” Allura nodded, and Captain Ulya left the hall. Allura joined the rest of the team in the kitchen. Krolia took a peek at her son from the window overlooking the dining hall.

“Why do you think Shiro was freaking out?” Hunk whispered.

“My son has mated.” Krolia said, idly.

Everyone in the kitchen turned to her, bewildered by her comment.

“ _What did he make?_ ” Hunk asked, in an attempt to pretend as if he didn’t hear Keith’s mom just announce that her son had mated.

Pidge shushed him. “Krolia did you say your son, Keith - _Keith Kogane..._ _mated?_ ”

“Hm.” Krolia hummed, squinting at Keith, then at Lance, ignoring the looks of horror coming from the Paladins around her. “Perhaps maybe not completely.”

“Perhaps,” Allura began, trying not scream, “that is a _private_ matter that we shouldn’t-”

“I’m very proud.” Krolia turned to face Allura. “But, and correct me if I’m wrong, it is my understanding that human males do not carry young, is that right?”

Hunk cringed. “Oh my god are we going to have to have _The Talk_ with Keith’s mom?”

Pidge grimaced. “Nope. No. No way. Not gonna do it.”

Krolia frowned. “Talk about what?”

Hunk breathed in, accepting his role and preparing to have the most awkward conversation of his young life.

He opened his mouth, “Mrs. Kogane - Ma’am… you see, human males can't-”

“ _Hunk!_ ” Keith yelled from the dining hall. “That’s _enough_.”

The paladins looked through the window that separated the kitchen and the dining hall and realized there was no glass. Keith and Lance’s faces were both incredible shades of red.

Hunk coughed. “You got it, Keith, buddy, pal.”

The last of the crew had left, and Shiro stepped over to the kitchen, his lips pressed together in a thin line of a frown. “I’m going for a walk around the ship. Allura, please- keep an eye on Lance.”

“Are you all right, Shiro?” Allura asked softly.

“I’ll be fine.” Shiro’s voice was stern and deep, but not hostile. Allura nodded, and Shiro stepped away, passing by Lance and Keith as he left. Shiro looked down at the two of them as they sat there watching him. His expression was stone cold, like a statue. Keith knew in an instant - he was _pissed_.

When Shiro had gone, the others left the kitchen and approached Lance and Keith.

Pidge looked to Keith, then to Lance. “So… what happened?”

“Can we _not_ talk about it?” said Keith, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground.

Lance sighed. “Okay. Subject change time! Anyone want to hear me play the bongos?”

Hunk looked to Pidge. “Yeah! Pidge and I are going to work on tweaking some Galra tech that Captain Ulya is going to bring for us. I haven’t heard any music in a while, so that’ll be really nice.”

“Cool I’ll go get them out of my Lion and I’ll be right ba-”

“I’ll get them.” Keith interrupted. “ _You say here.”_

Lance pouted, but didn’t argue.

Keith stood and left without looking at Lance, who watched him leave, hoping for any kind of attention but getting none. Krolia took note of Keith’s cold demeanor.

Lance looked back to Hunk. “So, what are you working on?”

Allura answered. “I think it’s high time we do a proper mind meld. We are out of tune with each other and I think it would help us better understand each other if we synched ourselves together. The Captain mentioned she had some Galra memory extractors that, with the right adjustments, can help us enter a mindful connection.”

Hunk giggled. “Yeah, I can’t wait for Captain Ulya to come back with it.”

“How long would you say it will take you?” Asked Lance.

“I don’t know. We might have to take it with me, we only have another eight hours before we reach the edge of the galaxy, but this is heavy stuff. I don’t want to zap our brains by accident.”

“Yeah, I’d like my brains un-zapped, thank you,” said Pidge.

Hunk was smiling as he went on about how he what he wanted to go when he got his hands on the tech.

Krolia walked away from them and sat at a table not far, watching Lance and the others talk. Allura noticed her by herself, and stepped over to sit with her.

“Krolia? Everything all right?”

“Yes, thank you.”

Allura smiled at Krolia with closed lips. She used to hate the Galra, but after the things she’d seen, she had grown out of most of her hatred. She found herself at peace sitting next to Krolia - and she felt compelled to reach out to her.

“You can talk to us, you know.”

Krolia smiled. ‘Thank you, but I don't want to burden you."

"It's not a burden at all. You are important to us, too."

Krolia took a moment to think. "I'm not really that good at talking."

Allura smiled. "You don't have to be able to speak well in order to say what's on your mind. But, if you need some time to yourself, I understand. I won't bother you."

Krolia shook her head. "You're not a bother. I just- I missed so much with Keith. We spent lots of time together in the quantum abyss, and he’s grown so much. But I still worry about him.”

“What’s there to worry about?”

“I couldn’t be more proud of him in all things, but I really regret leaving him when I did. I knew that I had to leave. The war with the Galra was ongoing and I know Keith says he doesn't blame me, for having to leave... but look at the mess I’ve caused.”

Allura frowned, puzzled. “What do you mean?”

“Keith spent his life putting up walls, not letting anyone in for fear of rejection. And then when he finally had a team he could call family, _he left_. He abandoned the people he loved.”

“But he left because he had to.” Allura offered.

Krolia smiled. “Yes, the war with the Galra was ongoing, and I know that Lance and Shiro say they don't blame Keith for the things that happened while he was gone, but the fact that he left still remains.”

Allura understood the connection Krolia was making, but wasn’t sure what to say. Krolia continued. “Keith just reenacted his own experience and now he’s paying for it. I don’t want that for him. I want this war to be over, and I want him to be with those that he loves and I want him to not be afraid to love anymore.”

Allura frowned, looking over to Lance, who laughed with Hunk and Pidge about something. He seemed fine on the outside, like always - but she wondered if it was genuine or just another mask.

Krolia continued. “There are other things that occupy my mind. I can’t help but feel awful. When Keith’s father died, Keith was vulnerable. He had _no one_ and he probably wanted nothing more than for someone to love him. If Shiro hadn’t been there to protect my boy, who knows what could have happened… Who could have stepped in and-”

“Don’t think about that.”

Krolia looked at Allura, who continued to watch the other paladins, her brows pinched together. “Krolia, if you dwell on what _could_ have happened, you’ll go mad. Focus on being there for him now, and let your guilt wash away.”

Krolia smiled. “It’s good advice, one that you should also follow.”

Allura blinked, then looked to Krolia, not sure what she meant.

“You still feel responsible. I can tell,” said Krolia.

Allura sighed. “It’s difficult to know that you’ve failed someone. All my years of studying to be the perfect diplomat and I couldn’t even tell that one of my team members was actually a clone and another was being abused. If I had known, maybe I could have-”

“If you dwell on what _could_ have happened, you’ll go mad. Focus on being there for them now, and let your guilt wash away.”

Allura smiled, hearing her words thrown back at her. “You’re absolutely right.”

Just then, Captain Ulya stepped back into the room and made her way over to the Paladins. First mate Geno followed her, holding a tub with Galra markings on it. Allura stood upon seeing them, and Krolia did the same.

Geno set the tub on the table. “One Galra memory extractor.” Hunk and Pidge smiled, creeping over to the box.

The Captain smiled, and addressed them. “Paladins of Voltron, I’ve been thinking about your travel arrangements. There’s a planet near the edge of this system - we could reach there in about five vargas - where many ships are sold. It wouldn’t be very prudent to continue to travel with just your Lions, it makes you all vulnerable to be spotted by the Galra and with the cargo you are holding, it might be a good idea to get a ship big enough to travel with the Lions. I’ve talked to my first mate, and we’d be more than happy to help you find one.”

Allura smiled. “That’s much too kind of you! Please, you don’t need to-”

Captain Ulya shook her head. “Not at all. I’m committed to helping you, whatever it takes.”

Allura breathed. “It’s settled then. We’ll get a ship.”

The Captain smiled, and looked to her first mate. “Well then, Geno. Set a course for Ghi.”

“Aye.” Geno walked away, ready to do as the Captain ordered.

Pidge squinted at the Captain, who turned back to Allura. “Well, there are some things I need to arrange for our stop. I will return. Please, feel free to use any of the facilities you find.”

“Thank you, Captain Ulya.”

“Please,” The Captain spoke with a smile. “Call me Ulya.”

* * *

 

Shiro walked down the narrow hallways of the ship with no real direction, which was fine - he needed to think. It was always easier to focus his mind when his body was preoccupied, and he would prefer a punching bag to a walk, but as the nerves in his arm were still sensitive, this would have to do.

 _“Shiro.”_ Kuron’s echo of a voice made Shiro growl.

 _“Not now,”_ thought Shiro.

_“It was Keith.”_

_“I know.”_

_“Are you angry?”_

Shiro breathed. He saw a door open in the hallway, and he peered inside to see what looked like some kind of gym. Maybe he could get away with letting off steam with just his left hand if he found something to hit.

_“Shiro, we share a body. I can tell when you’re angry… and jealous. Not answering me isn’t going to do you much good.”_

Shiro looked around the room. Most of the equipment was fit for the Unilu who had four arms, and Shiro walked further inside, leaving the door cracked open behind him.

“Yes, I’m angry with Keith but… it’s not just that.” Shiro spotted what he was looking for - a hanging punching bag.

_“What else is it? Are you angry at someone else, too?”_

Shiro touched the bag with the tips of his fingers, feeling the firmness of it. It was perfect. He looked around for gloves, anything to keep his wrist straight. He found a roll of bandages. _“Who are you angry at, Shiro?”_

Shiro wrapped his wrists and hands as he stared at the bag. “I don’t know. Maybe myself for letting this happen? You? Haggar, of course... and Lance.”

_“Lance?”_

Shiro stretched his shoulders, then approached, getting in his stance. “I’m disappointed.”

Shiro struck with his left fist, and stopped himself from making contact to the bag with his right.

_“Because he lied to you?”_

Shiro punched again, Making contact with his left and punching air with his prosthetic. _“_ Yes. He lied to me, and it was so convincing.”

_“You lied to him, too.”_

“He doesn’t know that.” Shiro grunted, and the heavy bag pushed back.

_“So, what? Are you going to start your relationship with him built on a lie?”_

“I’m just not ready to tell him.” Shiro went faster - contact with his left - air with his right.

_“Fine. Don’t tell him. It’s going to come back to bite you.”_

Shiro shook his head.

Kuron was quiet for only a moment. _“What about Keith?”_

“Keith… He should have stopped him. He should have known better… but he used Lance.”

_“You and I both know that Keith wasn’t the one who instigated it.”_

“It doesn’t matter. Keith of all people should recognize when someone is acting out of desperation, but he still- ugh.” The bag shook against Shiro’s left-handed punches, and he had to keep reminding himself not to hit with his right. “What’s worse, Lance was prepared to hide him from me and Keith was going to let him lie to me. Keith hid from me, Kuron. He’s never hid from me.”

_“If he had come to you and told you what he did, would you be less angry with him?”_

“I don’t know, maybe.”

_“You’d still be pretty angry.”_

Punch Left. Hold Right. “He took advantage of Lance’s desperation. It’s pretty seriously wrong.”

_“Are you sure you’re not just jealous that he got to feel the inside of Lance’s mouth before you did?”_

Shiro wanted nothing more than to ignore Kuron, but Kuron wouldn’t have it.

_“Or are you jealous that Lance got to taste Keith first?”_

“Shut up.”

Kuron chuckled. _“You want them both, don’t you?”_

Shiro fumbled, and he knew the instant he fucked up that it was going to hurt. He struck the bag with his right fist, and yelled. It was like a thousand tiny knives shooting through the length of his arm, and he groaned, backing away from the bag as he held his arm close to him tightly.

“Shiro?!” Keith’s voice echoed from the hallway, and Shiro hoped Keith wouldn’t find him there as he sat down on a bench and laid back, gritting his teeth together as he tried to breathe away the pain.

“Shiro!” Keith was definitely in the room now, and Shiro couldn’t quiet his breathing enough. Keith found him, and he set down Lance’s bongos on the floor as he rushed over to him and kneeled by the bench.

“Shiro what happened?”

“Nothing- I just- unng!” Another wave of nerves fired all at once, shooting through him.

Keith looked at the bandages on his hands and wrists, then to the punching bag. “Oh god, what are you doing punching shit? Didn’t the doctor say specifically _not_ to do that?”

Shiro only felt incredibly embarrassed, but right now all he could try to do is breathe. His nerves started to calm, and he focused on Keith’s face.

Kuron laughed. _You want them both, but you care too much for them and you want them to be okay - and they keep. screwing. up._ **_Classic._ **

Shiro shook his head. “You’re going to be okay.” He whispered, Keith frowned, not knowing what Shiro meant.

“Shiro, what’s wrong?” Keith’s worried voice hovered above Shiro.

“I’m fine, thank you.” Shiro sat up, shaking his arm and letting the tingle of his nerves become background noise.

“Are you sure?” Keith’s eyes were large with concern, and he placed his hand on Shiro’s back to help him up. Shiro watched him, and Kuron’s voice taunted.

_Typical Shiro. Always in love with the boys with the puppy dog eyes and a penchant for poor decisions._

Shiro pursed his lips, trying to drown Kuron’s voice, but Keith assumed Shiro’s frown was meant for him.

“I’m probably the last person you want to see, huh?” Keith lifted his arm off Shiro’s back and moved away from him slightly.

Shiro sighed. “That’s not it.”

“Then what is it?” Keith asked, hoping for any kind of reprieve.

“Kuron, my clone... He says the dumbest shit.”

_I can hear you._

Keith raised his eyebrows. “I forgot he talks to you… What is he saying now?”

_The truth._

“He likes to remind me that we’re the same person, but with different experiences.”

“What does that make him?”

_It makes me right._

“He has a different view of me, as if he’s looking from a glass into my life and he tells me what he sees. It’s like having someone take a step back and tell you what’s obvious about your actions.”

Keith nodded. “Do you both have the same sense of morality?”

“Yes and no. He knows what I should and shouldn’t do based on the rules I’ve placed for myself long ago.”

_But you’re real fucking close to breaking those rules, aren’t you?_

“...but he’s a little sassier than I thought I could ever be.”

_Oh, I'm sorry, Shiro. Maybe if I hadn't found out that my whole existence was a lie, fabricated to manipulate and infiltrate the people I loved, I would be a little more polite._

Shiro frowned. "He's exactly like me and it's frustrating."

Keith chuckled. "Getting a taste of your own medicine?"

Shiro perked up, suddenly thinking of an idea.

“Hey Keith?”

_Shiro, I know what you’re thinking -_

“Yeah?” Said Keith.

_Shiro, don’t do it._

“Let’s spar.”

_Oh my god. Are you really that much in need of some physical contact?_

Keith wasn’t sure if he had heard Shiro correctly. “I’m sorry, did you say let’s _spar?_ ”

 _Why don’t you just take a page out of Lance’s book and blow him since you’re so goddamn needy._ Kuron was throwing a fit in the back of Shiro’s head, but Shiro just smiled, unwrapping his wrists.

“Yeah, right now. I know you make Lance spar with you when there's something on your mind, so let's give _you_ a little taste of _your_ own medicine."

Keith laughed nervously. “Shiro, not to be rude or anything, but you just shocked your hand big time and I’m at full strength. I don’t think-”

“We can wrestle, that way I don’t have to strike anything with my arm.”

_Or maybe you shouldn’t._

Keith smiled, but his smile faded when Shiro stood from the bench and moved towards an open padded area. “Wait, you’re serious?”

“I’m _dead_ serious.”

“Is- is this about Lance? Because _he_ came on to _me_ and I-”

“And you ignored the little alarms going off in your head, didn’t you, Keith?”

Keith swallowed. “He was very convincing,” he said weakly.

Shiro gestured Keith to come over, and after a short moment, Keith stood to join him.

_Okay, Shiro. I’m out. You’re obviously not listening to me. Have fun confusing the fuck out of Keith._

Shiro breathed a sigh of relief as Kuron went quiet, and Keith stood in front of him on the mat.

It had been a while since they’d wrestled, but Keith was sure that now, with Shiro only being able to really use one arm, he had a chance of beating him.

“Let’s do this,” Said Keith.

Keith and Shiro lowered their stances, and it began. Keith lunged forward, wrapping his arms against Shiro’s shoulders as Shiro pushed against him. Keith tried to try to bring him down, but Shiro was built to last, and he barely budged, although Keith prided himself to see that he was straining to push back.

The moment didn’t keep, and they pushed off each other.

“You shouldn’t have touched Lance,” said Shiro.

“I know.”

They lunged forward again, pushing at each other, their heads locked closely together.

Shiro grit his teeth as he spoke. “You should have known better.”

“I know!” Keith said, straining.

Shiro pushed down, his palm against the back of Keith's neck forcing his shoulders to dip dangerously towards the ground.

“Why did you go through with it?” Shiro asked, their foreheads touching and Keith feeling the heat coming off Shiro. “Why did you take advantage of him like that?”

Keith escaped his grasp and they were untangled at once. They got back into position and again they were locked together.

"Tell, me Keith. Why'd you let him jump you?"

“I like him!” Keith shouted.

Shiro grunted, and wrapped his arm around Keith’s torso, lifting him and swinging him against his chest and towards the ground in a grand sweep. Keith was nearly pinned, Shiro on top of him - but he kept himself off the floor with everything he had.

“That’s _hardly_ an excuse. If you care about him _at all_ , you won't put your hands on him again.” Shiro said, pushing down against Keith.

Keith huffed, “What, so _you_ can fuck him?” Keith pushed up against Shiro, not wanting to go down so easily.

Shiro frowned. “That’s not why, and you know it. Lance is susceptible right now.”

“Oh, shut up. You’ve _always_ been the jealous type. You just _can’t stand_ the idea that someone else had Lance first! You want him for _yourself!”_ Keith pushed Shiro off of him, turning him over his right side and pinning him to the ground, straddling him as Shiro's back landed on the mat with a thud.

“Heh. I win.” Keith chuckled.

Shiro looked up at Keith from the floor, his face red as Keith sat comfortably on his lap. The stance was too suggestive- too provocative, and Shiro’s breath hitched.

Keith’s face was smug, but that soon changed when he felt Shiro’s arousal getting the better of him from underneath his legs. The opportunity to grind down was tempting, but Keith was more surprised than anything. “Is that…” Keith started to ask, but began to get red at the thought.

Even Shiro knew this was bad, and he pushed Keith slowly off of him. Shiro lifted his head off the floor and Keith stood, not looking Shiro in the eye. Keith grabbed Lance’s drums before walking back over to offer Shiro a hand up. Shiro took Keith's hand and stood, trying to cover his waist.

Keith sighed. He didn’t want to address whatever he had just felt against Shiro, but he found himself asking anyway. “What… what is _that_ about?”

Shiro studied Keith’s face - the purple scar on his cheek tugging at the memory all over again. He didn’t realize he was reaching out to touch it until Keith gasped.

“Shiro?”

“I did this to you.” Shiro lifted Keith’s face to him, not addressing Keith's question.

Keith blinked, watching Shiro's dilated eyes. He wasn't sure what was happening. “No, that was your clone, Shiro it wasn’t you.”

“You saved me.” Shiro said, letting his hand leave Keith’s face. _It would be wrong to kiss him,_ he thought to himself.

Keith couldn’t help but feel cold where Shiro’s hand had been - he missed the contact already. His lingering feelings for Shiro had his hopes up, but he remembered his words to Lance. “Are- Do you… Are you going to be with Lance now?”

“Keith, this isn’t about who gets to keep Lance. He’s not a toy to be passed around.”

Keith frowned. “Lance made it pretty clear that he doesn’t give a fuck about me. He just wanted a convenient dicking after you rejected him and I simply happened to be around. Sure, I should have stopped it if I had any self-respect, but I didn’t. Honestly, if you hadn't gotten there, I probably would have kept going. I let Lance use me because I like him, but I know it was wrong. It was dumb and I guess I won’t do it again or his big beefy boyfriend is going to come for me, huh?”

Shiro sighed. “Keith… I’m sorry about Lance. I really am.”

After a pause, Keith looked down. “It’s not your fault.”

“He’s going to need a lot of help getting out of that little hell he’s in, and I think this is just the beginning.”

“I’m sorry I let Lance suck my dick.” Keith mumbled.

Shiro laughed through his nose. “I know he didn’t give you much choice. I need to talk to him about that, actually.” Shiro sighed.

Keith nodded, still clutching Lance’s bongos.

“What are those?” Shiro pointed at the drums.

“Oh, hah. Lance got this on Erashon. He’s going to play for us in the dining hall if you want to hear it.”

Shiro smiled. “Yeah that sounds nice.”

Shiro and Keith headed back to the dining hall, keeping things light without bringing up Shiro's sudden arousal when they wrestled. Keith kept it in the back of his mind, wondering why Shiro was avoiding it but too shook to push the question.

They reached the dining hall where the paladins and Kroila were. Hunk and Pidge were already at work on the memory-extractor while Lance was busy with what looked like a video game setup.

Keith set the drums on the table in front of Lance, and he jumped, startled.

“Your drums.” Keith said, walking past Lance.

“Thanks, Keith.” Lance pulled them close to him and stood. Keith still hadn’t looked at him, and he pouted.

“Hold that drum solo, Lance. I’d like to talk to you for a minute.” Shiro said, standing near the exit. Lance placed the bongos back on the table and walked over to Shiro.

“Come on, let’s take a walk.”

Lance perked up. “Alone?”

“Not like _that_.”

Lance grumbled, but followed anyway. Keith watched as they left, and crossed his arms, sitting on a chair to fume.

* * *

“I know you’re mad, Shiro.” Lance said as soon as they were far enough from the dining hall.

“Why do you think I’m mad, Lance?”

Lance sighed. “Because I lied to you?”

“What else?”

“I…. sucked Keith’s dick?”

“What _else?_ ”

Lance blinked. “I don’t know. I’m pretty sure that’s the two major screw-ups I accomplished today but feel free to tell me what else I did.”

Shiro frowned. “Did you even ask Keith if he wanted to be with you before you went to town?”

Lance paused, trying to remember what he had said. “I asked him if he wanted me to stop.”

“And at what point was that?”

 _ ~~“After I rubbed his dick over his suit.”~~_ Lance mumbled.

“After what?”

 ~~ _“After I rubbed his dick over his suit.”_~~ Lance said, again unintelligibly.

“Lance, I can’t-”

 **“After I rubbed his _dick _ over his _suit! _ ”** Lance yelled, but soon regretted doing so as several crew members passed them in the hallway, looking at Lance with wide eyes.

Lance’s face went red.

 _“Lance.”_ Shiro said sternly.

“What?”

“You know asking someone if they want you to stop after you’ve already crossed a line _is not_ the same thing as asking for consent.”

“Well I thought I had made it pretty clear to him that what I wanted was-”

“Lance, I think you really hurt Keith’s feelings.”

“What? How?”

“Think about it. You didn’t discuss with him at all the nature of what you wanted from him beforehand.”

“Well, yeah, but-.”

“Keith didn’t know that you were just looking to screw someone. He thought _you liked him_ , and that he would get to be with you romantically afterwards, but that’s not what you did. You used him, Lance.”

Lance sighed. “I didn’t mean to.”

“And _then_ you lied to me.”

Lance was silent. Shiro continued. “I know I might have seemed a little... _jealous_ , but I don’t want you to feel like you have to lie to me, especially when it comes to Keith.”

“You just seemed so mad.”

Shiro closed his eyes for a second. “I just couldn’t stand the thought that someone might have taken advantage of you. If you had explained to me what was going on from the get-go, it might have gone down differently.”

Lance breathed in, accepting Shiro's words. “I’m sorry I lied to you. It won't happen again.”

“I’m sorry I freaked out. It will probably happen again.”

Lance laughed through his nose. “It’s okay, I understand.”

Shiro half smiled. They were quiet for a moment, but Shiro had a question on his mind. “So why Keith?”

Lance sighed. “I’ve liked Keith for a while, and if I’m honest he’s been someone I’ve... _thought_ about. I guess when I couldn’t have _you_ I-”

“You can’t treat someone like a back-up, Lance.”

“He wasn’t a back-up.”

“You only went to him because I told you I wouldn’t be with you.”

Lance nodded. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Shiro placed his hand on Lance’s shoulder. “You owe Keith an apology, and a serious one at that.”

“Yeah, I know.”

They walked silently for a while, beginning to make one huge lap around that level of the ship. They passed the gym Shiro had been in earlier, and he decided on something to say.

“Keith told me about your drums. I’d like to hear you play.” Shiro offered.

Lance smiled. “Of course he told you about the drums.”

“What do you mean?”

“He was the one to tell you about my broadsword, and he tried to get you on my Lion when he suspected things between us were strained. I didn’t think he would keep doing that after he found out what happened.”

Shiro thought for a moment. “I think he just likes to talk about you.”

“No, he loves you too much to ever really like me the way he says he does.”

Shiro was stunned for a moment.

Lance continued, seeing as Shiro seemed to be in a state of disbelief. “He _loves_ you, and he always has… so what I’ve done today is _really_ bad. I’m sure he’s going to hate me more now that he thinks I’m trying to steal you away.”

“Keith doesn’t-”

“He does.”

Shiro sighed. “Look, my relationship with Keith has always been strictly... friendship”

 _Liar._ Kuron chimed in. Shiro frowned, ignoring him. “Lance, Keith won’t hate you, because you’re not stealing me away. I was never his, and he doesn’t see me that way.”

“Shiro, have you _seen_ the way he looks at you? When you’re in a healing pod, he waits with his fucking fingers on the glass like some cheesy emo music video because he can’t stand to lose you again.”

Shiro shook his head. “Lance, have you seen the way Keith looks at _you?_ ”

“With disgust? Yep.”

_“Lance.”_

“I know, I know- no more self-deprecating comments blah blah blah.”

Shiro sighed. “Keith has always pointed you out to me because he likes you.”

Lance scoffed. “Sure. He might like me, but he _loves_ you. There’s a big difference.”

“Lance, he sees me like a brother.”

“That’s a load of shit.”

“Stop cussing.”

“Okay Mr. _You’ve Got To Be Fucking Kidding Me_ ”

“Hey, I get a pass on that. I literally had just found out you were sleeping with Keith.”

“We didn’t fuck, okay? I just- I just sucked him off.”

“ _Same shit_.”

“No it isn’t.”

“What, is that what Kuron told you?”

Lance went quiet, and Shiro realized what he had said.

“I’m sorry, Lance. I didn’t mean it like-”

“Yes.”

“What?”

“It’s what Kuron told me at first. That sucking someone off _didn’t count_ because it wasn’t the same as fucking.”

Shiro frowned. Lance continued. “He would make me-” Lance closed his eyes. “Forget it.”

The two of them kept walking in silence.

“You can talk to me if you want to, Lance. About anything.”

“Do you know what I am, Shiro?”

“Beautiful, charismatic, funny, smart, and kind?”

Lance smiled. “Thank you, but I’m a drum that’s _begging_ to be played. After being struck harshly for so long, I feel like I don’t care who plays me or what I’ll sound like. The rhythm could be off but I wouldn't give a damn as long as I’m making a sound. I’m pathetic and I don’t even know where to start.”

Shiro frowned. “When you heard someone playing those drums in the square, what did you hear?”

Lance frowned. “Sadness. It was all wrong.”

“And what did you do?”

“I asked the owner if I could play it.”

“And after that?”

“I played it.”

“You played it _right._ You heard how awful that drum sounded in the hands of someone who was playing it wrong and you took them away so you could play it _right._  If you are like an instrument that wants to be played, don’t you want to be played _right?_ ”

“I guess I’ve spent so long being played wrong I forgot that’s even a thing I can hope for.”

“Exactly. Hope for something healthy, Lance. Don’t settle for the messed up crap you _think_ you deserve, because I promise you that you’re worth so much more than you think.”

The corner of Lance’s mouth curled up in a half smile. “Does that make you my drummer?”

Shiro chuckled. "Maybe not right this moment."

Lance nodded, his smile still in place. "Yeah, that's probably wise."

They approached the dining hall, and Lance breathed out slowly.

“Are you okay, Lance?”

“Yeah. I’m just- I know I need to apologize to Keith. I just don’t want to, uh-” Lance’s voice was heavy, and he breathed in. “I don’t want to cry in front of him. I’ll look dumb, and he gets weird when people cry near him. He never knows what to do.”

“Yeah, he’s pretty bad at that.”

Shiro and Lance laughed together, remembering how awkward Keith is with crying people.

“Do you need a hug?” Shiro offered.

Lance breathed out again, letting the air fill his cheeks for a moment before deflating them again. “Yeah.”

Shiro pulled Lance in for a hug, and Lance rested his head on Shiro, letting a few tears fall. He breathed, trying to calm himself but sobbed instead, and Shiro rubbed his back.

“You’re going to be okay, Lance. I’m here if you need anything.”

Lance nodded into Shiro’s chest, cherishing every bit of contact he made with him, grateful that Shiro hadn't asked why he was crying again, but instead offered comfort. Lance smiled, soaking in the affection.

* * *

“Agh! My screw rolled away.” Hunk had his hands on a couple of wires. “Pidge, can you grab that?”

Pidge typed on a small computer. “Sorry, I’m busy. Keith?”

“Yep.” Keith paused _Killbot Phantasm I_ and stood up to grab the screw that was on the floor near Hunk, but as he approached, he accidentally kicked it forward and nearly out into the hallway. He grunted, annoyed that now he had to walk all the way across the room for one screw, but since it was for Hunk and Pidge, he stood and walked forward without complaint. He looked down at the little screw, careful not to kick it this time, and picked it up. He could hear someone sob in the hallway. His first instinct was to run back further into the dining hall, but the voice sounded familiar. He slowly poked his head into the hallway, and he could see Shiro holding Lance to his chest.

_“You’re going to be okay, Lance. I’m here if you need anything.”_

Keith gripped the screw in his hand and headed quickly back inside the dining hall to hand it back to Hunk.

“Here you go.”

“Thanks, Keith, you’re the best.” Hunk took the screw and continued working, and Keith plopped down in front of the small screen that Pidge had hooked up for him to play on.

His thoughts ran at a million miles a second, analyzing everything that had happened that day.

Lance’s voice in the supply closet, asking _“Did that feel good, Keith?”_ replayed like a song stuck in his head, while the memory of seeing Shiro with Lance - the way they held each other, and the way they kissed... They were so beautiful. Keith knew he loved watching them together. It was enchanting to see, but he also knew that because they were together neither of them was with him. It also meant that Lance didn’t like him, especially if what Pidge and Hunk said about having to choose _one_ person was true. Maybe it was the universe’s punishment on him for being so greedy and wanting them both. He sighed to himself as he played the game in front of him.

Minutes later, Lance and Shiro walked in. Keith’s knee bounced up and down as he tried to concentrate on completing the level.

Shiro watched Lance walk over to Keith and tap him on the shoulder. “Hey, uh. Keith? Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Not right now.” Keith said, not looking up at Lance.

Lance frowned. “It’s kind of important.”

Keith sighed, but straightened his back to sit up. “Yeah, we can talk.” Keith did nothing to turn off the game.

Lance bit his lip. “I was thinking we could talk _privately._ ”

Keith raised his eyebrow. “What, so you can get me alone again? I don’t think so.”

“Yeah, about that. I’m really sorry that I did that. I just-”

“No, I get it, Lance. I _really_ do.”

Hunk and Pidge peeked over to Keith, who had his eyes fixed on the screen. Keith continued. “It’s fine. I’m not mad about it. Go fuck Shiro, or whatever.”

Hunk and Pidge’s eyes went wide and they shared a glance, hearing Keith’s tone.

Lance’s brows pinched together and he frowned. “Keith, I’m so-”

Keith sighed, pausing the game. “Lance, it’s fine. Just don’t try it again.”

Lance stood silently for a moment. He looked at the convoluted console setup which he had started to work on getting together before he left to talk to Shiro. He knew Pidge probably finished setting it up to keep Keith occupied. “Hey, I can help you with the next level if you want.”

“It’s fine, I’m good.”

Lance swallowed. “You sure?”

Keith growled as his player died on the screen. “Actually, I’m done playing for now.” Keith stood up. “I’m going to put it up unless you want to play.”

“Ye-yeah I’ll put it up when I’m done.”

“Cool.” Keith shoved his hands in his pockets and walked away, leaving Lance behind. Before he could leave, Shiro stopped him.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“You told me to stay away from him.”

“I told you not to put your hands on him, not to act like _an asshole_ to him.”

Keith growled. “Oh, sorry I gave your little lover-boy over there an attitude.”

Shiro’s eyes widened at Keith’s snark. _“Keith.”_

Keith sighed, and rolled his eyes.

“What’s wrong, Keith?”

_“Nothing.”_

Shiro pulled Keith into the hallway. “It’s not _nothing_ , Keith. You weren’t this bitchy when I last checked so what happened?”

Keith sighed. “I just feel shitty, okay? I want to be left alone.”

Shiro breathed in. “Lance just wants to apologize.”

“I don’t _need_ his apology. I’m the one that messed up, remember?”

“Keith, I never said that you’re the only one who messed up. You’re going to at least listen to him, okay?”

“Maybe later.” Keith shook Shiro’s hold on him and tried to walk away.

Shiro sighed, then looked at Lance, who sat down to play the video game in front of him. He looked back to Keith, who was busy trying to walk away.

“Keith, come here.” Shiro’s voice was tender, and Keith stopped. It was the same voice Shiro used when he bailed him out of juvie, and the same voice he would use to tell him that he was worth a damn.

Keith turned around and stepped back. When he was in front of Shiro again, he pulled his hands out of his pocket to cross his arms. “I’m sorry. I just feel kind of... “

“Used?”

“Yeah.”

“Maybe you should tell Lance that.”

Keith nodded, and walked back into the hall and called out to Lance. “Lance, let’s go for that walk.”

Lance perked up and paused the game to follow Keith. Shiro looked at the current black paladin. “Just listen to what he has to say, okay?”

Keith nodded at Shiro, but as Lance approached, his chest hurt. They left the dining hall together, and they walked in silence as Lance waited until they were further away from the door. Lance opened his mouth to speak, but Keith spoke first.

“So when you went to talk with Shiro was it this quiet or did you skip the talk entirely and head straight for the supply closet?”

Lance scoffed at Keith’s comment. “Come on, I was waiting to be further away from the dining hall.”

“Why, so nobody could hear you _moaning?_ ”

“Keith, what the hell, man?”

“I could ask you the same question.”

Lance tilted his head back in frustration. “Look, Keith, I’m really sorry. I didn’t even ask you if you wanted me to do.. that. I just kind of- went for it and I didn’t take into account how that might have made you feel.”

Keith was quiet, keeping his gaze locked onto the hallway in front of him. “I’ll get over it.”

Lance frowned. “Keith, I don’t want you to shut me out.”

“I’m not shutting anyone out.”

“Then _listen_ to me!”

Keith sighed. Lance continued. “I know I was just feeling needy and I wanted someone to want me, but I sought you out. Not as a last resort- not as a backup. I wanted _you_ to want me. Plain and simple.”

Keith eyed Lance from the corner of his eyes. “No, you like Shiro.”

“I like you both.”

Keith blinked, wearing his confusion on his face like a banner. “You like us _both?”_

“Y-yeah. I guess that makes me weird, but it’s the truth.”

Keith’s head spun. “Is it… _normal_ for someone to like two people at once?”

Lance frowned. ‘I guess not.”

“No, wait- I mean. Ugh. Is it- why is it bad?”

Lance blinked. “What?”

“ _Who said_ it was bad to like two people at once?” Asked Keith

Lance paused to think for a moment. “Well, nobody… but like when it comes to dating I’m pretty sure people only like it when you date one person at a time, right? Like, dating more than one person is always like… _cheating._ ”

Keith slumped. “Yeah, you’re right.”

They walked silently.

“Why do you ask?” Lance said, leaning in towards Keith.

Keith dodged the question. “So, you’re going with Shiro, then?”

Lance moved back so he could think. “Well, yes and no.”

“What do you mean?”

“Shiro talked to me, and I think he’s right. I really need to take some time to work on thinking about what I really want. I have no idea what a healthy relationship even looks like.”

Keith crossed his arms. “I could probably show you what a healthy relationship looks like.”

Lance smiled. “I’m sure you could.”

“But?”

“But right now I need a friend, not a lover, and I don’t want to use anyone to try to heal myself. Especially not you or Shiro. You guys deserve better than that.”

Keith stayed quiet.

“So, for now. I’ll probably just… not have sex.” Lance whined.

Keith raised his eyebrow. “Why do you sound like that’s a _hard_ thing to accomplish?”

Lance smiled. “Let’s not get into that. We better get back to the dining hall before Shiro starts getting paranoid.”

Keith nodded, slightly worried that Lance hadn’t answered his question, but decided not to push it as they turned to head back.

“Hey Lance?”

“Hm?”

“I’m sorry I… I’m sorry I treated you like…”

“Like a hussy? Yeah not cool, my dude.”

“Uh… I was going to say slut but hussy works too.”

Lance half-smiled and looked to the floor. Keith watched as his smile started to fade. “You know, that was one of Kuron’s favorite words for me… aside from _whore_.”

Keith frowned deeply, and grabbed Lance’s shoulder and turning him so that they faced each other dead on. “I’m sorry. For real. You’re not a slut or a whore and I’m sorry that I-”

“Oh, but I am.”

_“Lance.”_

Lance breathed out of his nose. “I know it’s pathetic, but that’s where I am right now. I’ll crawl out of here eventually.” Lance looked to his shoulder where Keith’s hand was touching him. Keith noticed he was smiling.

“Lance...” Keith spoke the name like a sigh.

“Hey, Keith?” Lance turned back to Keith, grabbing his wrist and sliding it slowly off his shoulder. “...if you keep saying my name and touching me like that, it’s going to be real hard to not have sex with you.” Lance let go of Keith’s arm, and Keith backed away immediately, not sure what to do or say.

Lance laughed as he took a step back. “You should see your face right now. It’s _priceless_.” Lance led the way down the hall, and Keith placed his hand on his chest, trying to calm down.

“Keith, you coming?”

Keith blinked, then nodded. They walked back to the dining hall in silence, letting Keith stew in the heat of his own thoughts. When they reached the doors, Lance looked back to see Keith still in a daze - his face red and his eyes wide.

“Keith, chill out. I’m not going to flirt with you if you can’t handle it.”

Keith took a moment to breathe. “You’re the worst.”

Lance laughed. “I know.”

* * *

Keith and Lance entered the dining hall. Hunk and Pidge had started putting away their wires into the tub they came in. Shiro, Allura, and Krolia weren’t around.

“Did you finish?” Lance asked Hunk.

Pidge raised her eyebrows and smirked. “Did _you?_ ”

 _“Pidge.”_ Keith scolded.

Hunk answered Lance. “No, we’re not done with the adjustments, but we need a few parts, and we’re thinking we can get them when we stop to get a ship. We really can’t do anything until then, so we thought we’d just play _Killbot Phantasm_ until we get there. It’ll be a few hours before we reach that planet Captain Ulya was talking about.”

“Where’s everyone else?” Keith asked, not seeing Shiro.

“Shiro went to meditate or something, and Krolia and Allura left with the Captain.” Hunk explained.

“Hey, Keith?” Asked Pidge.

“Yeah?” Keith answered.

“You really gotta talk to your mom the first chance you get. She’s got _questions_.”

Keith sighed. “Yeah, I’m sure she does. I’ll go find her.”

“I’ll stay with Hunk and Pidge.” Said Lance.

“I call player one!” Pidge exclaimed.

Hunk and Lance laughed. They never fought her on who got to be player one. Keith smiled at Lance and left. Lance took the opportunity to watch Keith leave, staring at his backside and smirking to himself.

“Ahem.”

Lance turned around to see Pidge and Hunk grinning evilly.

“What?”

“So. About that Keith.” Hunk started. “You into him?”

“I’d hope he’s into him considering they _did it_.” Pidge chuckled.

Lance blushed. “I don’t know what-”

“Krolia told us,” Pidge cut Lance off. “She that when Galrans mate, they release certain pheromones and that _Keith_ was showing all the signs of someone who’s recently uh… well the word she said was mated but that’s a gross way of putting it so we’re gonna say long story short we know you decided to save a horse and _ride a cowboy_.”

Lance breathed in. “We didn’t exactly… uh….”

Pidge frowned. “Are you trying to tell me you gave him a handy?”

“What? Oh god no. This isn’t The Garrison. We’ve moved past that. No, in this house, _we suck dick like men_.”

“You sucked his dick?!” Pidge exclaimed, only for Lance to cover her mouth in vain as her voice echoed off the walls, and the three of them looked over to the entrance to see Allura, Krolia, Keith, and Captain Ulya walking past, their eyes wide. Keith covered his eyes and forehead with his palm.

“H-hey guys!” Lance started, his hands still covering Pidge’s mouth.

Allura cleared her throat. “Paladins, I just wanted to let you know we’ll reach the planet Ghi in one and a half vargas. Please be ready.”

The three of them nodded, prompting Allura and the Captain to walk away. Krolia and Keith followed down the hallway, Keith taking the time to glare daggers at the other paladins before he left.

Lance let his hands free from Pidge’s face and groaned. “Great.”

“Does anyone else think there’s something off about Captain Ulya?” Pidge asked, wiping her cheek.

“What? No, she’s so nice,” said Lance.

Hunk placed his hand on his chin. “I’ve thought maybe she’s too nice.”

“Right?” Pidge said.

“Guys, she did so much to help us already. She let us on the ship when we needed a break, then she helped us destroy that Galra battleship. Now she’s even nice enough to take us to a planet to get us a ship so we don’t die out there. I mean, her crew gave us the bow and everything.”

Pidge and hunk nodded.

“Yeah, you’re right.” Pidge crossed her arms. “I guess I’m just not used to trusting people easily. Especially after Lotor.”

“And Kuron.” Hunk added.

Lance nodded in agreement. “Yeah, but I think the Captain isn’t someone we should worry about.”

Hunk snapped his fingers, remembering what he wanted to ask. “Oh yeah, Lance why was Shiro mad earlier? Like, why did he need Captain Ulya to bring everyone in one place?”

Lance sighed. “A lot of reasons.”

Hunk studied Lance. “...Does it have to do with what happened with his clone?”

Pidge frowned. “What does Kuron have to do with this?”

Lance rubbed the side of his arm. “Nothing, it has to do with me and how I treat people.”

“Are you alright?” Hunk asked.

Lance smiled. “Yeah I’m fine. It’s all fine, now. We all talked. It’s cool.”

“You sure?” Asked Pidge.

“Yeah, everything’s peachy. Now if we want to play we have to do it now or we won’t have time to put up the console later.”

Pidge and Hunk nodded, and the three of them sat down to start the game.

* * *

The Paladins, Krolia, and Geno boarded one of the ship’s shuttle pods. Captain Ulya stood in the hangar outside, hanging near the open door.

“Allura, it might be a good idea to leave your mice here.”

“Why?” Allura asked.

“I don’t want you to have to worry about them while you’re on Ghi. It’s not the best place to bring such sweet, small friends such as these. Plus, I have more treats!” The Captain pulled a cookie from a bag she had with her.

The mice looked at Allura, excited for more cookies.

“Oh, alright.” Allura laughed and placed her mice on Captain Ulya’s shoulder for her to take care of. They celebrated as she pulled a treat from her bag for them.

Captain Ulya waited for Allura to sit before addressing everyone. “Paladins, you should know that Ghi has a thriving black market for ships, parts, and _other_ commodities. Please don’t stay for any longer than you need to. Geno has the best eye for a good ship, so he’ll be accompanying you.”

“Thank you, Captain.” Said Allura.

Captain Ulya smiled. “I told you, Call me Ulya.”

Allura smiled back. “Thank you, _Ulya_.”

The door closed, and the shuttle disembarked from the ship. It wasn’t long before they entered the atmosphere, which was thick and proved to be a bumpy ride.

They landed on the mostly poisonous surface. Ghi was much more humid than Erashon, and the Paladins each wore their suits and helmets as they approached a city covered by a protective dome, most likely to keep out the deadly gaseous fumes.

“Now, Ghi is a little different from Erashon.” Geno started.

“How so?” Asked Allura.

Geno scrunched his nose. “It’s _worse._ ”

The Paladins shared a look as they approached the gates. The shuttle entered a buffering zone that closed behind them. A tall guard approached the shuttle and Geno opened his window to talk to him.

“Geno, long time no see. How’s Ulya?” The guard looked like some kind of Galra mix, due to the purple hue of his skin and the way his ears were fuzzy, but he had four arms like an Unilu.

“That’s _Captain_ Ulya to you,” Geno corrected. “...and she’s doing fine. How about you? You’re still here?”

“Yeah, you know I can’t leave”

The two of them laughed dryly. The guard leaned forward, looking at the paladins. “So, did Captain Ulya finally ditch her morals?”

“No, these folks here are leaving with me.”

The guard looked over Lance, eyeing him up and down. “Such a shame.” Shiro and Keith frowned. The guard looked at Shiro. “And that one would make one hell of a gladiator.”

The Paladins looked at each other, now worried more than ever.

The guard’s eyes next fell on Krolia. “How about her? _She_ looks like a fine-”

Geno tapped the side of the shuttle to get the guard’s attention. “Like I said, these are Captain Ulya’s _guests_. They’ll be leaving with me.”

“Then I guess you’re not taking anyone else out with you, either?”

“We’ll see. Just here for a ship, but who knows.”

“That’s the spirit. Alright, Geno get going - and don’t let that one wander off. The richies like ‘em small.” The guard pointed at Pidge, who crossed her arms and shivered. Everyone glared at the guard as Geno closed the window and drove towards the opening gates.

Shiro tapped Geno on the shoulder. “Geno, did you bring us to a Galra outpost?”

Geno sighed. “No, but it might as well be one. This planet hosts a lot of Galran defectors, but not the noble kind like our friend Krolia here. These people left the empire because even in the eyes of the Galra, they have _no_ morals. This is Ghi. Home of the boneless, spineless cowardly rejects of the Galra Empire. That in itself doesn’t make them evil, but they brought their Galran customs with them when they settled here and multiplied it tenfold.”

“So trafficking slaves, gladiator fights, and let me guess, brothels?”

“It gets much worse, but you get the gist. So don’t go anywhere alone, okay?”

Hunk frowned. “Why are we here again?”

Geno worked on parking the shuttle pod. “Have you done your mapping lately? This is the last planet for at least a week in the direction you all are headed. You’re going to need a ship or you _will_ die.”

Hunk’s eyes went wide. “Got it. Scary planet or die. Cool. _Really_ lovin’ all these little adventures we keep having.”

Pidge frowned, opening up her suit’s map hologram. “The signal on this planet really sucks.”

Geno shut off the engine and turned to the group. “Alright, we’re here. This street we’re heading down is going to be crowded.”

Keith turned to the group. “I don’t like the sound of a crowd. It’s too easy to get lost. We’ll keep a buddy system. There’s seven of us not including Geno, so we’re an even number. Hunk - look after Pidge. Mom, you’re with Shiro. Allura, you’re with-

“Allura’s with me, cool.” Lance said, smiling at the princess.

Keith frowned. “Allura, you’re with me.”

“What? Hey!” Lance whined.

“Lance, you stick with Geno.” Keith turned to the first mate. “Geno, you got that?”

“Got it.”

Keith turned back to everyone. “If anyone loses sight of their buddy, let the others know _immediately._ Got it?”

Everyone in the shuttle answered yes, and Keith nodded. “Alright, let’s go buy a ship.”

Geno nodded. “Sliding the door open now.”

The door slid open, and Keith was the first to step out, followed by Allura, then Krolia. They faced a gray wall. The air was quiet - not the bustling road Geno had described. Keith’s senses were on edge, and he looked to his mother, who seemed as on edge as he was.

“Keith, something’s wro-”

Before Krolia could finish speaking, they were rushed by several large guards - one striking Krolia on the head. Keith’s jaw dropped as he watched her fall, and he drew his blade instinctively.

There were twelve guards, and Keith made quick work of two of them, and he could see Lance out of the corner of his eye with his bayard out in the shape of his rifle. The guards fired back, and were met with Hunk’s cannon.

 _“_ Stun them!” Keith heard a voice yell.

_“Geno?”_

One of the guards twirled a metal cylinder before striking it on the ground. Allura hit the ground, and all Keith remembered was a flash of light.

* * *

Shiro stirred awake, and he could hear muffled voices. Geno’s voice.

“What about the Altean and the Galra woman you promised?”

“They got away, but they’re within the walls of the city. They can’t be far.”

“These should be enough for now. Are they truly the paladins of voltron?”

“Yes. Pitiful bunch, don’t you think? Although the little one and the big guy are smart with tech. Keep them away from wires and the like if you want to keep your buildings operational.

“Got it.”

“It is my understanding that the one with the white hair is formerly known as The Champion, although he seems weaker now. I don’t think this is the same arm as before, but don’t underestimate him. He put up one hell of a fight. As for these two…” Geno stepped closer, and he leaned down to grab a tuft full of soft brown hair, and Shiro’s eyes widened as he saw him pull Lance up to his knees.

“This one in particular is a bit of a whore. The white haired one had to assemble the _entire ship_ in one place to try to make sure he wasn’t screwing anyone, which didn’t help because he was with already screwing one of the other teammates. I’m sure he’ll make a fine addition to your _collection_ if Zethrid, Ezor, and Acxa find him useless.”

“How long until they get here?”

“About three days.”

“I stand to make a lot of money in three days, then.”

Shiro grunted, trying to get up, but finding his arms bound together behind his back. His body was still too weak to fight against them.

“Too bad we don’t have the women, they’d be even more profitable, although I think with the right garments…”

Shiro could hear Lance’s voice trying to escape his throat, coming out in scratchy pulses. “Ulya… Captain Ulya said-”

Geno frowned in Lance’s face. “Listen, kid. Captain Ulya has a crew of twenty to feed. She does not have time to place false hopes in the hands of a splintering team with a super weapon that _can’t even assemble_. I hope you’ll understand. It’s nothing personal. She liked you. She thought you had some real _courage,_ but it wasn’t enough.” Geno let go of Lance’s hair, and he fell to the ground with a thud.

“Lance…” Shiro looked over to see Keith calling out, his helmet radio was on, letting everyone hear his voice as he whispered. “We’re going to be okay. It’s going to be fine. Keep… Keep calm.”

Geno kneeled down, taking Keith’s helmet off. “This one with the long hair has a nasty attitude. He’s a fighter, through and through.”

“We’ll let the arena decide.”

Shiro drifted back out of consciousness, whispering out Keith and Lance’s names as his vision faded to black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this bitch (me) empty (on the inside) yeet  
> next chapter update September 1st


	4. The Will of Lions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Upstairs in the penthouse, Lance looked down at his lap, beautifully covered in blue silk with gold trimmings. He was surrounded by red drapes and cushions for some time since the other workers had dressed him. His hands were covered in gold jewelry: rings, bangles - and a pair of cuffs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to the shklance party boat, this is your Captain speaking.  
> As promised, a chapter.
> 
> and some smut
> 
> Lego

Keith could hear Shiro’s voice mumbling in the dark.

“Ten minutes… six… Lance… Keith...”

Keith groaned, his vision getting clearer as he blinked. Shiro was sitting on the floor, cross-legged with his elbows propped against his knees. He was wearing an all black outfit, and he sat leaned forward, holding his head in his hands with a strange smile.

“Shiro?”

“Keith…hah… Go back to sleep..” Shiro slurred, leaning forward so that his hands touched the ground. Keith noticed a black band around Shiro’s neck.

“Shiro, how long have I been asleep? And where’s everyone?” Keith looked down at his clothes to see that he was wearing all black. When he looked up, Shiro had gotten closer, slowly crawling to him on all fours.

‘Everyone’s… ahh… _dead_.” Shiro said, almost laughing.

“What?!” Keith instinctively inched away, his skin crawling at the announcement.

Shiro smiled. “Mmmm…. Not the paladins.”

Keith studied Shiro, unsure of what was happening. “Who then?”

“Ten minutes... Kill or be killed... The other cell mates...”

Keith looked around the empty room. He turned back to Shiro slowly. “Shiro, there’s no other cell mates.”

Shiro was close enough now that Keith could see that his eyes had a dark glaze about them. “Ten minutes… is a _long_ time.”

“Shiro, what’s wrong with you? What happened?!” Alarms were going off inside Keith’s head again. Everything was wrong. Shiro wasn’t himself and he didn’t know where the paladins were.

Shiro leaned forward, gently placing his mouth on Keith’s cheek. Keith gasped before pushing him off. “Sh-Shiro… what are you-” Keith stopped speaking as he felt dry flakes coming off Shiro’s shirt and onto his hands. “Is this… dried _blood?!”_

“I killed… hah… I killed them… six people...ten minutes…” Shiro was approaching again, and Keith did his best to keep him away. Shiro smiled through it, whispering, “I… I had to live to see you again.”.

It pained Keith to see Shiro with the expression that he wore. It was like someone else was there, behind his eyes.

“Kuron was right. I’m selfish.” Shiro whispered, hanging his head low.

“You’re not selfish.” Keith said, gripping Shiro’s face and pulling his head up to look at him. “You’re just… I don’t know I think you’re high… Do you know if they gave you anything?”

“You want to know… ah… you want to know something fucked up, Keith?”

“Not really.” Keith said as Shiro started moving closer again.

Shiro bit his lips, and when he spoke his voice was a low growl. “Lance… and you… I’d kill anyone for you. _.._ ”

Keith frowned. “Shiro, _what_ are you saying?” Shiro’s pupils were dilated wildly, as if he was seeing everything and nothing, and it was hard to recognize Shiro from behind his strange gaze. Keith finally pushed Shiro back, and it was too easy. Shiro didn’t even try to resist.

“What did they give you? Do you know?”

Shiro slumped back on his legs, sighing. “I don’t know….. _what_ it was…. but everything feels... _great_. And I know… I feel like I know everything about myself.”

Keith frowned.  “Where’s Lance, Hunk and Pidge?”

Shiro sprawled out on the floor. “Hunk and Pidge… they’re good kids. Ah… They were taken somewhere else.”

“And Lance?”

Shiro turned his head to the side. “They’re gonna... “ Shiro sighed. “They’re gonna fuck him.”

Keith clenched his jaw. “Shiro, what do you mean by ‘ _They’re gonna fuck him_ ’?”

“In the arena they kept running... commercials… They’re bidding to see who… who gets to rape him first.” Shiro laughed, but it was more of a high pitched cry. “I’ll kill them.”

Keith stared at Shiro in disbelief. “Is this a joke? Who’s bidding?!” Keith stood up, but as soon as he did, the room began to feel as if the walls of the room didn’t exist. He placed his hands on the wall behind him and leaned back to try to keep himself steady, to try to keep the walls of the room real enough to him.

“Everyone.” Shiro slid his hand up his own chest and his neck, breathing in air slowly.

Keith looked around the cell, hoping to figure out any means of escape. “We need to get out of here.”

Shiro hummed. “It’s the necklace…” Shiro tugged on the black band around his throat, showing it to Keith. “The more you move… The better it feels...” Shiro laughed, and it turned into almost a moan.

Keith blinked. “The… necklace?” Keith blinked again. Every time his eyes closed, the world seemed slower. “Shiro, I- I feel… I feel _funny_.”

“That means… you’re not going in for a match today.”

Keith giggled, falling to his knees and breathing out. “Breathing feels… so good.” Keith started panting, and placed his palm on the floor. “Oh, god…Shiro, I- I feel...hah... I feel so good.”

Shiro laughed. “You don’t have to fight today, sleepyhead.”

“I don’t have to fight today.” Keith repeated, smiling as he slowly crawled on his hands and knees over to where Shiro was laying.

“We’re all part of this Universe, Keith. We can save it.”

“We... _really_ need to get out of here.” Keith said, hovering over Shiro. The heat in his body running through him in tiny waves, sending shivers down his spine.

“Yeah we should… we should really escape.” Shiro said.

The two of them laughed, and Keith collapsed on top of Shiro, and the touch was exhilarating.

“This is bad.” Keith said, laughing.

Shiro nodded. “Don’t worry, Lance is going to get out.”

Keith rested his head on Shiro’s chest and sighed deeply. “I love Lance.”

“I know.” Shiro embraced Keith, holding him close. “I love him, too.”

“That’s okay. It’s all okay. We’re all- we’re all going to be okay.” Keith said, snuggling his face against Shiro as he held on to him tighter.

* * *

Hunk and Pidge walked forward, their hands bound in front of them as two guards brought them to a holding cell. They had just woke up, and everything was still fuzzy after being stunned, but as they heard the doors of the cell close behind them it was clear that things had gone south.

“Turn around.” The guard ordered from the other side of the cell door.

Hunk and Pidge turned, and the guard motioned them forward.

“Put your hands through the slot.”

Hunk glanced at Pidge, afraid of what might happen.

“I said, put your hands through the slot.”

Hunk went first, and in an instant the cuffs that were around his wrists were taken off. Pidge did the same, and like Hunk her cuffs came off. They rubbed their wrists, glad to be free of those binds.

The cell had benches along the wall, and one thin horizontal window letting light in - not big enough for anyone to crawl through. There were four others in the cell. One with a large head and four eyes who sat to Hunk and Pidge’s left. Two short, fuzzy aliens sat by the thin window. They each had stripes and solid yellow eyes - one had longer fur. The last person sat to their right and was thin, with no visible eyes but wore a pair of glasses, a wide mouth, and held a book in their hand.

“So, uh… Hi.” Hunk waved, the others were silent.

Pidge sighed. “What are they going to do to us?”

The alien with the long fur replied, “If you’re in here, it means your brain is worth more than your body.”

Hunk grimaced. “Are they going to harvest our brains?!”

“Not if you cooperate.” The alien with no eyes laughed darkly. “Let me guess. _You’re_ an engineer and _you’re_ a coder?”

Hunk and Pidge shared a glance.

“How did you know that?” Pidge asked.

“They killed the last two. You got lucky. Without an open spot you get sold to whoever wants you, and you don’t want to be wearing one of those black collars.” The alien with the large head explained.

“What exactly are we doing here? What do they need a coder and an engineer for?”  
The short-fur alien spit. “The empire is fragmenting, and Ghi has been a whore of a planet for too long. _The Warden_ wants guns, operational ships, better tech. He thinks he can defend this little poisonous rock from Galra Generals who probably don’t even want it. So if someone comes in who might know a thing or two, he puts them to work.”

Pidge crossed her arms. “We came here with friends, but they didn’t come with us. What’s going to happen to them?”

The four aliens looked at each other.

The one with the large head answered. “If they aren’t here, then they got black-collared. Which could mean they ended up in the arena to fight until they die. People place bets. It’s very lucrative.”

Hunk frowned, and looked out the small opening in the door, peering out. “And this place? Where are we?”

“You’re still at the main depot.” The short haired alien said. “I’m Aloo. This is my brother Sai.” Aloo gestured to the long haired alien. “The one with the glasses is Xan, and we call this guy Guey.”

“I’m Hunk. This is Pidge. We’re Paladins of Voltron.”

Xan scoffed. “Voltron, huh? That’s a good one.”

The one they called Guey crossed his arms. “I thought Voltron had five lions. There’s only two of you.”

“We got separated.” Pidge explained.

“Wait a second.” Xan started. “I heard something about…” he went silent before ‘looking’ at Guey. “There was an announcement from the Red Abbey on the main square billboard about _Loverboy Lance_ , the Blue Paladin of Voltron. I thought it was a just an advertising stunt.”

“Did you say Lance? That’s our friend!” Hunk said, excited.

Aloo climbed onto her brother’s shoulders so she could look out the window. “There it is! The screen is showing the commercial right now!”

Hunk and Pidge moved quickly to the window. They were overlooking a square, and Aloo pointed out a large screen playing video of Lance cascading down ropes masterfully.

“Hey that’s the footage from when we went around doing shows to get people to join the coalition!” Hunk exclaimed.

_“You’ve seen him in action, now have him in bed. Loverboy Lance, debuting tonight only at Red Abbey Pleasure Escape.”_

The video switched from footage of Lance twirling down ropes to footage of Lance shirtless, in a red room with cushions as several people tried to dress him and he lashed out. _“Fuck off!”_

_“Red Abbey Pleasure Escape - your pleasure is our desire.”_

Hunk’s eyes went wide. “What do they mean he’s _debuting?”_

Xan sighed. “You didn’t tell us your friend was _pretty_.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Hunk pressed.

Although they had no eyeballs, Xan’s glasses slid down their nose as if they were looking with wide eyes to Hunk. “You really don’t know?”

Hunk shook his head.

Xan sighed. “The pretty ones, or the people the Madam thinks is profitable, get taken to the Red Abbey. It’s a brothel, the most expensive and exploitative one here. Those that get taken there usually die quickly unless someone buys them for their own personal use.”

“So what, they just screw them to death?!” Hunk yelled.

Xan closed their book. “You’ve really never heard of this place, huh? Well, I guess you’ve lived a good life up until now.” Hunk and Pidge waited for an answer. Xan continued. “Not everyone gets to just die. The _pretty_ ones might get sold to another brothel if their popularity dips enough to warrant a demotion, but if their body gets to the end of its limit and they’re still popular, they get taken to Carnage. It’s a gore club dedicated to torture and dismemberment for pleasure.”

“Also very lucrative.” Guey added.

Pidge grit her teeth. “And the people here are okay with that?!”  
Xan shrugged. “They’re the outcasts of the Galra, and not the good kind. The people who come here do so to explore their darkest taboos. Your friend isn’t going to just be a whore. He’s going to be forced to do everything in the universe you can imagine and some things you can’t.”

“How are you guys not freaked out about this?!” Hunk cried.

Sai scratched his neck. “We’ve been working on tech here for about three weeks. It’s a hard life, but as long as we keep working we won’t get black-collared. I guess after seeing how things are here day in and day out you just get used to it.”

Guey spoke up. “It doesn’t help that Voltron is already famous across the Universe, and that your friend is known as _Loverboy_ Lance. If his mind isn’t strong, he’ll break within a week.“

“Th-they can’t do that.” Hunk felt his body go cold with the thought of what might happen.

Pidge backed away from the window, her small fingers shaking despite the heat. “We gotta get out of here. We gotta save Lance.”

Hunk closed his fists and turned towards the door, closing his eyes. “We have to save our friends.” He focused his mind, breathing out. “I need help.” He whispered, venturing into the deep black of the astral plane, feeling the surrounding space and the universe with his mind. “I need my bayard.”

Suddenly, Hunk’s bayard was in his hands. He opened his eyes and smiled.

“Pidge, back up.”

Pidge turned to Hunk, confused, but moved out of his way when she saw Hunk’s canon transforming. “Aw, heck yeah we’re bustin’ out of this bitch!”

Hunk fired his canon and blast the doors open. “Let’s go!”

Hunk led them through the dust cloud, looking left and right as an alarm began to blare. Hunk grabbed Xan. “Where do they keep the fighters? If they’re not with Lance or us then they probably took them there, right?”

“They’re probably sedated on the south side of the building.” Answered Xan.

Guards turned a corner. “You there! Stop!”

Hunk yelled, shooting them down with ease.

“Whoa.” Said Aloo.

Hunk took a step forward. “We need to get to the south side of the building.”

Pidge stopped him. “What about the other prisoners here?”

Hunk looked around, and could see eyes and hands peeking and reaching out from the slots in the cell doors. “You’re right. Figure out a way to open all the doors. I’ll go get the others.”

“What about us?” Guey asked.

Hunk looked to Xan. “D’you know your way around this place?”

“Yeah.”

“Then you’re with me. The rest of you grab the guards’ blasters and protect Pidge while she opens the cells!”

The group nodded, picking up arms as Hunk moved towards the south.

* * *

_“You’ve seen him in action, now have him in bed. Loverboy Lance, debuting tonight only at the Red Abbey Pleasure Escape.”_

_“Fuck off!”_

_“Red Abbey Pleasure Escape - your pleasure is our desire”_

Allura watched the busy street from behind several crates, the commercial reaching her ears again. She had lost count of how many times she’d seen it while sneaking around the city. She turned to look at Krolia, who nodded. They moved quickly towards an alley, staying unseen. They reached the alley and turned down a small corner, well hidden from the street.

“Anything you see look like the Red Abbey?” Asked Krolia.

Allura surveyed the buildings. Most were industrial or simply plain, but among the skyline was a tall building decorated with obscene but elaborate trimmings and paintings against a red facade. “That one.”

Krolia kept an eye on their surroundings. “What’s our plan?”

Allura scrutinized the building for any weaknesses. “I don’t see any windows near the bottom.”

“What about the windows at the top?”

Allura strained her eyes to see.. “It looks like most of them are just there for decoration… but there is a penthouse with large open view.”

Krolia peaked out. “You’re right, they’re fake. And the penthouse is too high up for us to scale without being noticed.”

“There’s got to be another way in -  A door where they deliver food and drinks.” Allura said, scanning the building again.

A digital voice began to speak from the plaza not too far from them. “ _Warning: two women at large. If seen, contact authorities immediately._ ”

Krolia could see an wanted hologram of their image from where she stood in the alley. “Allura, most of the people here are Galra or some variation thereof. We can blend in if you transform yourself, and then maybe we can get around the back where there’s bound to be another entrance.”

Allura nodded, and her skin turned purple and grew herself to the right size. “We’ll need to change clothes.”

Krolia looked up, and Allura followed her eyes to a clothing line hanging between the two buildings adjacent to them.

“Just going to borrow these.” Krolia scaled the walls easily and cut the line, letting the clothes fall. Allura covered herself with a light coat. “It’s so humid here I hardly believe anyone will fall for this.”

Krolia found a hooded vest and placed it on before tying her hair back.

“Oh, good idea. I’ll change my hair, too.” Allura said.

Krolia nodded. “Lance once said my hair was a dead giveaway that I was related to Keith.”

“He has mentioned Keith’s mullet a lot.”

“I think he called my hair a ‘rat-tail’?”

Allura shrugged.

When they had perfected their disguise, the duo ran down the alleyways surrounding the building, surveying their target silently until the only thing that stood between them and the building was a square with many shopping outlets and holographic billboards covering buildings as far as they could see.

“There’s no hidden alley leading to the building.” Allura said with a grunt.

“It’s so odd that this large building is surrounded by a plaza in all directions.”

“We’ll have to blend in with a group heading inside before we approach.”

Krolia spotted a familiar group heading into the front door. “Allura, is that Captain Ulya?”

Allura looked in the direction Krolia was pointing, and saw Allura, Geno, and a few members of her crew approaching the building. “What the quiznak are they doing here?”

“Forget them, there’s a delivery pod over there. We’re moving.”

Allura followed Krolia, and they joined a group of aliens following the pod to a side door, where two guards verified something with the shuttle driver.

Allura glanced at the others that were going in with her and Krolia. Everyone was wearing a black band around their necks. She whispered to Krolia. “Everyone has-”

“I see them.” Krolia looked around for anything to use that could look like a black band. She pulled the thick string from the hood in her disguise out of its place and bit it, tearing it in two then handing one to Allura. “Tie it around your neck.”

Allura and Krolia quickly tied their fake bands around themselves and continued walking forward.

There was chatter around them from the people without black bands, but those around them with it were silent.

* * *

Upstairs in the penthouse, Lance looked down at his lap, beautifully covered in blue silk with gold trimmings. He was surrounded by red drapes and cushions for some time since the other workers had dressed him. His hands were covered in gold jewelry - rings, bangles, and a pair of cuffs.

There was a screen playing a fight from earlier that day on repeat. Lance had lost count of how many times he had been forced to watch Shiro kill off people in the arena. He settled on looking down and nowhere else. There were murmurs from people around him who had come to see the new commodity.

“I heard that the Champion saw one of the commercials for Loverboy Lance’s debut tonight right before he had to fight and went _mad_.”

“Yes, he was quite ferocious.”

“Do you think they’re… together?”

“If they _were_ , they won’t be after tonight.”

Lance inhaled slowly. Shiro was fighting for his life, fighting to keep going, and Lance was stuck here watching it on repeat. He closed his eyes, trying to think of a way to get to Shiro. He had to save him. He had to do something. In the faint distance, he could see Shiro in the plane. He was laying down, staring up at the stars.

 _“Shiro?!”_ Lance’s voice echoed in the emptiness.

 _“Ten minutes… six…. Lance… Lance? Lance.”_ Shiro mumbled to himself. _“Where am I?”_

_“Shiro! Listen to me! You have to get up! You have to fight!”_

_“I already… fought so much. I’m tired.”_

_“Shiro!”_

Suddenly, the void disappeared, Shiro along with it.

“So this is Loverboy Lance.” A new voice stepped into the room. Lance kept his head down.

“We have bets coming in by the _thousands_.”

“That’s excellent for a debut. But if he doesn’t maintain popularity we always have the other paladins.”

Lance’s eyes went wide at the thought. He’d never considered it - that they could subject the others to work in the brothel. The weight of the possibility nearly crushed him - they had already forced Shiro to kill for their enjoyment - and Lance was in a whorehouse. This place was awful, and he needed to escape and soon.

“There are a lot of people who would pay handsomely to see the Champion’s strength outside of the arena… especially after what everyone saw this morning.”

Lance had enough. He bit the inside of his cheek and sucked on it, letting the blood pool inside his mouth as more people walked in the room. _“I have to get out of here.”_ He thought to himself.

“Not to mention, when we finally find those women-”

Lance faked a cough, spitting out the blood from his mouth all over his lap, and those around him gasped.

“Is there’s something wrong with him? Is he sick?”

“UGh, disgusting!”

“Somebody check on him.”

Lance smiled as someone approached him, and Lance felt the pulse of the Red Lion laughing with him.

* * *

Pidge opened up a panel in the main hallway of the depot as guards got closer.

“We’ve got more on us!”

Pidge hid behind a pillar, and shots landed on either side of her. She reached for a gun that had been dropped by a guard, but a laser blasted it away from her.

She grit her teeth.

“I could really use my bayard right now!” Pidge screamed, frustrated. The doors in the cells were opened, but the prisoners were mostly too afraid to exit, seeing how pinned down Pidge and her group was.

“Come on, Pidge think.” She gripped her hair and crouched down. “Think, you’re smart. You got this. Come on.”

She closed her eyes, breathing in.

“I need to save these people.” She breathed out.

“I need help.”

She could feel the purr of the green lion calling out to her. “We can do this.”

Just then, she felt the pulse of her lion, and her bayard appeared in her hand. “Alright, we’re in business now!”

She whipped around, forming her bayard and rushing the guards. She shocked two and disarmed another. She tossed a gun into the hands of one of the inmates.

“This is your chance! You can be free, all you need to do is fight!”

The aliens in the cell looked frightened, but as Pidge kept fighting, they looked at the blaster, and then to the guards down the hallway and realized they had a shot to take.

Meanwhile, Hunk and Xan reached the south side of the main depot. Hallways of open cells with people laying on the floor in piles surrounded them.

“What’s wrong with everyone?”

“These are the fighters. They’re all sedated. Even with the doors opened, they’re useless.”

“Is there a way to get them un-sedated?”

“Even if we take the black collars off of them, most will be woozy and touchy for a few hours.”

Hunk shot a guard that peeked their head out from the hallway before speaking again.

“This area isn’t heavily guarded.”

“Because the fighters can’t do anything, they don’t expend too many resources on this section.”

“How are we going to get these people out?”

“We can start by releasing them from getting more doses of the sedative.”

“Right. Let’s go.”

* * *

Allura and Krolia surveyed the lobby of the brothel. There were all sorts of rich-looking people wandering about in gaudy outfits, pulling people by their collars on chains.

“We need to make it upstairs.” Krolia whispered.

Allura nodded. “There’s a lift on the other side. Do you see it?”

“Mhm.” Krolia stepped forward, keeping her head down, but stopped when someone stepped in front of her.

“I thought I recognized you.”

Krolia looked up to see Geno standing in front of her.

“Interesting that you chose this place to try to sneak into, as this is where we planned to take you and-”

Krolia cut him off with a hard punch to his face, he screamed and stepped back, woozy but still conscious and holding his nose as it bled.

“WHERE’S MY SON?!”

Allura rushed past, stepping over one of the lounge couches and rushing past others. A lamp shattered as she ran past it, and shots bore holes in the walls as different patrons began firing at her. She jumped off a table and rolled to where the elevator was - it had no doors but one moved continuously up while the other went down. She jumped in, and as she looked back could see Krolia fighting several others.

“If I find Keith I’ll bring him back!” Allura yelled as Krolia landed a kick to someone’s face.

Allura reached the top of the elevator and got off the platform carefully. She looked around to see a door labelled “Penthouse” in Galra.

She walked over and checked the knob.

“Locked.” She said to herself. She backed away, preparing herself to kick the door in.

_Click._

The sound of a gun cocking into place stirred her, but it was too late as she felt the barrel touch the back of her head. Allura put her hands up.

“I’m really sorry to have to do this, but if I take you in I can get more money for my crew.” Ulya’s voice was calm and sinister.

“You sold us out.”

Ulya sighed. “Yes, I did. Please understand, though. I wanted to put my faith in voltron, but if a war is to be won, we need resources.”

“If you’re going to shoot me, then do it.”

“No, you’d make me a pretty penny. I’ve got I got a crew ain't been paid and a powerful need to eat sometime this month.”

“You could have told us! We could have helped you!”

“See, that’s the difference between you and I, Allura. You trust people - I don’t. So really, it’s all your fault for trusting a crew of pirates. And when Lance’s debut is publicly broadcasted, just remember that _you_ did this to him, not me.”

Allura twisted and crouched down before Ulya could pull the trigger, and she shot into the air.

Ulya was quick to dodge the jab coming at her from her left, but not quick enough to dodge the knee to the stomach.

“I gave you a chance!” Allura screamed as Ulya coughed in pain, and Allura used the opportunity to knock her gun out of her hand. “You betrayed me and my team!” Allura landed a blow on her face, sending her flying back. “You sold my friends into slavery after you told me you wanted to help!” Allura stepped over to her and pressed her foot on top of Ulya’s neck. “And you took my quiznacking mice.”

Ulya gurgled underneath her foot, trying but failing to breathe. Allura was silent as Ulya’s arms tried to fight against Allura’s leg, but slowly the strength left her and she went limp.

Once Ulya was quiet, Allura stepped off of her and walked over to the gun on the floor. She picked it up and aimed at the door, shooting the lock off.

The door opened to a stairway, and Allura rushed up.

“Lance!” Allura stepped into a cushioned room, only to see Lance standing in the center, surrounded by still bodies splayed out on the cushions. Lance turned, his altean broadsword in his hand and blood on his face. His expression was cold like death, but his eyes had a fire in them like she’d never seen.

“Allura?”

“Lance? Is that… is that the broadsword?”

Lance nodded, looking at the blood covered blade of his bayard. “Yeah. It… it came to me when I needed it.  Where’s everyone else?”

Allura blinked, accepting that Lance was somehow able to summon his bayard. “We need to find the others. Come along.”

Lance stepped over several bodies and made his way to her. “Shiro is in the Arena. Do you know where that is?”

Just then, they heard an explosion. Lance looked over to the window that faced a building to the east, seeing a plume of dust and rubble fall from it. Lance squinted, then closed his eyes, breathing in and out slowly.

Allura watched as his eyelids fluttered in his concentration.

Lance was in the astral plane, and he could see Hunk and Pidge there.

 _“We have Keith and Shiro. We need help.”_ Hunk's voice called out.

Lance opened his eyes. “Come on, Allura. It’s them, they need help.”

Allura didn’t understand at first, but then smiled. “You connected with them?!”

Lance said nothing as he ran down the stairs, Allura right behind him. They got on the elevator going down, but as they reached the next level lower, Lance hopped off, leaving Allura dumbfounded.

“Lance?!”

“There’s other people trapped here. We have to get them out. Go help the others! I’ll make it out of here. I’ll find everyone later!”

Allura could hardly protest as the elevator kept going down, and she watched Lance leave as she was lowered to the next floor.

Allura arrived at the lobby where her and Krolia entered. The room was much calmer than when she left. There were some people on the floor knocked out, and the ones who were standing worked to cut off the black bands around their necks.

“Krolia, I know where Keith is.”

Krolia looked up to see Allura. “Good. Everyone! Grab any firearm you can and get everyone out of here. I need to leave.”

“The blue paladin will help you escape!” Allura announced.

“You saw Lance?” Krolia asked.

“Yes.” Allura checked how many rounds she had in the weapon she took from Ulya.

“Why is he not with you? Where’s Keith?”

Allura snapped the firearm’s magazine back into place. “Lance can handle himself. We’ll meet up with him after he liberates this place. Right now, the others need us.”

Krolia nodded, and followed Allura out the door.

Allura and Krolia ran across the plaza, towards the building that had exploded as others ran away from it.

* * *

Keith giggled, feeling the ticklish sensation of someone touching his neck.

“Keith, buddy. Come on I gotta take this off of you.”

“Hunk?” Keith mumbled. “I thought I’d never see you again.” Keith laughed through the sentence, then teared up. “They’ve got Lance.”

“Wow, whatever they gave you is _working_.” Hunk said as he tore off the collar around Keith’s neck before moving to Shiro. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you show that much emotion in a 30 second time-frame.”

Shiro laughed. “Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunk”

“Oh, god they got you too. Okay, well...” the black collar came off Shiro, and Hunk stood back with his hands on his hips. “Can y’all walk?” He asked.

“Hah…you said y’all” Keith said, his face red as he laughed. “You always make fun of me for that.”

“Can you stand, Keith?” Hunk asked.

Keith leaned forward, placing his hands in front of him and pushing off the ground. He stood up with a stretch, and Shiro stood up slowly following him.

“Okay, so it looks like you can stand… but I’m not convinced you can run seeing how happy you both look.”

Keith inhaled slowly. “Hmm... Where are we going? Are we gonna save Lance?”

“Lance is good. We need to get you out of here. Any ideas?”

Keith and Shiro smiled, then laughed.

Hunk placed his hand on his head. “Of course. Why would I bother asking you, you’re both way out of your mind.”

Keith nodded.

“Come on, stay behind me. We have to wake up the others,” Hunk said.

Keith yawned. “Or we could lie back down.”

“Don’t even think about it, Keith!”

Shiro and Keith followed Hunk slowly, hanging on to each other for support but mostly cuddling as they went cell to cell freeing the mostly sedated fighters from their collars.

* * *

Allura and Krolia reached the main depot. There were people running out of the blown out wall. Allura and Krolia could tell they had been captives by the way they were dressed in all black. Guards began approaching the building, and Allura took aim and fired at them, startling the prisoners.

“If you find a weapon, grab it and use it!”

The prisoners ran, but there were some who appeared dazed and confused.

“Krolia, see what’s wrong with them.”

Krolia ran into the building as Allura covered her, and when she was in, she could hear Hunk’s voice.

“Come on, let’s go!”

Krolia saw Keith walking behind Hunk and she ran to him. “Keith!” She ran up to Keith and hugged him. He hugged back firmly.

When she pulled away, she could see his dilated pupils and his lax expression. “What did they give you?” Krolia asked, then looked to Shiro who was in the same state.

“Krolia, no time to explain! We need to get these people out of here!” Said Hunk.

Krolia nodded “What do you need me to do?”

“Go to the cells, find anyone still down and take the black bands off their necks and get them to move closer to the opening!”

Krolia nodded, then turned to Keith. “Stay here with Shiro. I’ll be back.”

Keith nodded, and Krolia let go of him to move on further into the building.

* * *

Allura was outside, getting pushed back by heavy fire. She grit her teeth as she took cover behind a large chunk of the wall and saw that her weapon was out of juice.

_“Quiznack!”_

Just then, Hunk appeared from inside the building and took cover on the inside of one of the standing walls, firing back at the guards. Allura eyed his cannon and smiled.

“Hunk! You got your bayard, too? How-”

“Just concentrate! I’ll hold them off,” Hunk yelled to Allura.

Allura nodded. She closed her eyes. Lance had summoned his bayard, and so had Hunk. She knew that the original paladins of many years ago were able to realize that power, but concentration was difficult. There were blasts around her, and rubble underneath her. People making their escape nearby.

This was war.

War…

Fighting…

No time for diplomacy.

Her father always tried to be diplomatic…

Her _father_.

Allura hit the ground with her fist. If her father had taken to stopping Zarkon, none of this would be happening. Her family might still be alive, and maybe none of the paladins would be in danger. Her frustration grew and turned on herself. If she hadn’t trusted the people she trusted, they never would have been in that place.

“No! I won’t let myself be the reason they win. I have to fix things.” She said to herself. “I have to fix _myself_ … Help me fix myself… I have to fight!” The blue lion answered her call with a purr, and suddenly the bayard was in her hand. She smirked and transformed it into a whip and stood from her hiding spot, whipping a gun out of the hands of one of the guards in a flash of pink light.

* * *

Lance crouched behind the main door, having cleared the building of all enemies. He peered out, surveying the area. Seeing it was clear, he motioned for the men and women in the brothel to make their escape. Many of them had taken weapons from the panderers who now lay on the floor either unconscious or dead.

“The coast is clear. Get moving.” He ordered them, and everyone - all the former slaves filed out of the building, the bravest and armed going first. Lance moved out along with them, his bayard transformed into his rifle.

“Keep moving towards the main depot! We have to help them!”

Lance got ahead of the group, taking out any guards that approached. As they got closer to the opening in the building, he could see Hunk and Allura holding their ground against what appeared to be guards, or some type of militia. They weren’t wearing any type of official uniform like he was used to seeing with the Galra, but considering they had their guns pointed at Hunk and Allura, it wasn’t hard to see that they were the enemy.

“Wait here.” Lance said to the others. He stepped out, but was shot at and he scrambled to hide behind the building. He checked his body - no wounds. He leaned against the building covering them as he transformed his bayard into his sniper rifle. He closed his eyes and breathed out. There was a sniper with a view of the courtyard, and he probably wasn't the best shot.

He could take him out, but he needed to know where they were and what his chances were of not getting shot.

“Anyone got a mirror?” Lance shouted to the group. He’d only seen this trick work once in a movie, but if it worked he’d be able to get his position.

One of the workers gave him a small mirror, not much bigger than a compact. He carefully stuck it out from the side of the building.

Three shots fired and the glass shattered.

“Three shots… only one hit.” Lance breathed out. “Okay. Lance closed his eyes, searching for Hunk again in the astral plane to talk to him.

 _“I need a moving target.”_ He said in the quintessence of the astral plane, but the presence he met there wasn’t Hunk's.

 _“I’m on it.”_ Said the voice.

Lance’s eyes shot open. “No, _KEITH_!”

Lance could see Keith stepping out of the opening.

“Don’t miss!” Keith yelled, running out into the open air.

Lance cursed under his breath but stepped out, his rifle ready.

First shot. Keith is still alive.

The sniper was in the building in front of him. Top floor.

Second shot. Keith is still alive. Lance spotted the sniper, and aimed.

If he shot a third, it’d be over.

Third shot.

Lance pulled the trigger, praying that the bullet he heard to his right didn’t just hit Keith. He knew he took out the sniper. He didn’t need to worry about a fourth shot, but right now he needed to know if Keith was okay. He couldn’t see him in the courtyard in front of him.

“Nice outfit.”

Lance breathed a sigh of relief hearing Keith’s voice from behind him. He turned around and stepped back into the safety of the cover of the building. “You’re fuckin’ crazy,” Lance said, hitting Keith’s shoulder.

“Yes. I’m also high right now.” Keith said with a grin.

Lance blinked, and looked at Keith’s eyes. “Holy shit you’re not kidding. What-”

“I don’t know but I’m pretty sure I slipped into the astral plane on accident just a moment ago and I feel GREAT.” Keith beamed. “Although it’s not as strong as it was earlier…”

“That’s probably for the best.” Lance said with a laugh.

Keith smiled, but Lance noticed how he kept glancing down. Lance glanced at himself, and remembered he was still wearing hardly anything - just the blue flowy garments and gold accessories that the brothel had dressed him in.

“It’s a new look.” Lance said dryly.

Keith smirked. 'I like it."

Lance rolled his eyes. “ Go sit down. I’m going to see the situation with Hunk.”

Keith nodded, and moved to sit with his back against a wall.

Lance peered over to see Hunk on the other side of the courtyard. He waited for a nod, and then dashed across while Hunk covered him, pinning the gunners down with blasts so they had to take shelter while Lance made his way across.

“Where are your clothes?!” Hunk cried out like a worried mother.

“Nevermind my clothes where’s Pidge?!”

“Right here!” Lance smiled hearing Pidge’s voice, he turned to see her standing next to Shiro.

“Shiro!” Lance ran up to Shiro and hugged him. “I’m so sorry for what they did, Shiro.” Lance tried to fight back tears, but as Shiro embraced him, he let it out.

“I’m so sorry, Shiro.” Lance sobbed.

“Lance. Are you okay?”

Lance found himself surrounded by purple light, and when he opened his eyes, he and Shiro were in the quintessence plane together, looking at each other.

“Lance… Everything that you were facing and you thought of me?”

Lance nodded.

Shiro smiled. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”

The two of them held each other tightly, and only when they finally let go were able to see the physical world again.

“Lance, I love you.” Shiro whispered.

Lance blinked, looking at Shiro’s dilated pupils. He frowned. “Yeah, I’m sure you do, buddy. Try that again when we’re not getting shot at and you’re not tasting colors, alright?” Lance tapped Shiro’s shoulder and stepped away from him, leaving Shiro in a dazed confusion. 

Lance saw Krolia coming with people hanging off her shoulders and setting them down with others not too far away. Most people laid or sat down, and they all seemed to be feeling some type of way.

“What’s going on with everyone?”

“They’ve been drugged. This is how they keep the fighters from rising up.” Krolia held up a black band. “I’ve got the last of them but they’ll need some time to sober up.”

“I guess they didn’t count on the nerds and the sex workers rising up.” Lance said.

Krolia nodded. “The good thing is, this city is gated and it looks like it’s been under lock-down since the explosion. We just need to make sure that it stays that way before they realize how dire their situation is.”

“Already on it.” Pidge’s voice from the floor surprised the two of them.

“How long have you been sitting there?” asked Lance.

“Since your moment with high Shiro.”

Lance smiled. “Let them retreat. Pidge, keep the doors locked, and when they gather and bunch up at the exits, we’ll have them gathered in one spot and we can take them out at once.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“The city is protected by a dome because the gas outside is too deadly for anyone to survive in. The reason this city goes on automatic lockdown anytime there’s a breech is because they don’t want anyone opening the city walls and killing everyone.

“How can we help?” An unfamiliar voice startled Lance. He turned to see an alien with no eyes wearing glasses.

“I’m Xan. You must be Lance. Your friends were worried about you. Glad to see that you’re safe. We understand that you’ve got plan? How can we help?”

“We?”

Lance looked around to see several others standing around Pidge.

“They’re like, smart or whatever,” said Pidge.

“We’re engineers, coders, doctors, pilots and the like.”

“Got it. Well, we’re planning on liberating everyone, but we’re having a small problem with the plan..” Lance lifted his hand to his chin, tapping on it as he thought.

“You could just force them out into the gaseous atmosphere.” Said a small alien with stripes on their fur.

Pidge perked up. “If we open the gates is there anything that could protect us from the gas until everyone else is dead?”

“Even if there was, how would we get out after?” Asked Lance.

Pidge closed her eyes. “Wait... We could summon the Lions.”

Lance blinked, then closed his eyes, feeling for the answer in the astral plane and finding it with Red. “Pidge is right. We could summon our Lions just like we summoned our bayards.”

“Keith didn’t summon his.” Hunk said, gathering with them. “The last of the gunners is down. Everyone else retreated.”

Lance frowned. “We might have to make do with four Lions, since both of our black paladins are a little _loopy_ right now.”

Just then, a loud roar came from outside, and everyone looked to see Keith standing in the middle of the courtyard underneath a large shadow. Lance stepped out, Hunk following close behind.

“Keith, what are you… oh my god.”

Lance could see the shadow being cast from the Black Lion above the dome from the outside, and Keith grinned.

“What- how?!” Hunk yelled.

“I said come to daddy and she came.”

Lance and Hunk both cringed.

“I’m kidding. I summoned her.” Keith breathed in. “She kept calling out to us.” He looked up at the shadow hovering above. Shiro stepped out of the main depot and approached them. “She’s been talking to me, too. She says she brought a friend.”

Suddenly, there was a blue flash of light, and Keith’s wolf appeared before them.

“Shadow!” Keith knelt, and pet his wolf slowly. “Oh my god your fur is so soft.” Keith exclaimed, running his fingers slowly through the wolf's fur.

Lance smiled. “This is perfect. We’ll get Shadow to transport everyone to the Lions, then we get everyone out while we flood the city with the gas!”

Pidge approached them. “So what do we do then? Everyone will be in the Lions, and then-”

“We put them on Ulya’s ship and take them to Earth with us” asserted Lance.

“Ulya’s ship… that’s a big ship to man with just five of us. We need at least twenty skilled people to run it and that’s cutting it close.”

“What about twenty engineers, coders, and the like?” A voice startled them. It was Xan. “Most everyone you liberated from the main depot can run a ship like that easily. And with so many of us, we won’t have a terrible workload.”

Allura stepped towards the group. “We’ve worked hard to liberate you, we wouldn’t want to trap you in a war as soon as you’ve had your freedoms.”

“I guess that’s our decision to make.” Said Xan. “I say you transport everyone to these Lions like you said, and once the city has been cleared of gas, anyone who wants to stay can stay.”

“What about the shuttles? All the vehicles that are driven in can be used as shields against the gas.” Asked Hunk.

Keith smiled. “We’ll just shoot ‘em. The exits all have buffering chambers. It’ll create a bottlenose effect. As soon as anyone comes out, we shoot ‘em.”

“Keith, you stoned madman.” Hunk said with a laugh.

Allura nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

Lance nodded, then Pidge, Keith, Hunk, and finally Shiro. ‘Let’s do it, then.”

* * *

Keith, Lance, Allura, Hunk and Pidge sat in a circle meditating. One by one, their Lions came to them, and when they were all there, Shadow took groups of people to their Lions. Once everyone was on board, Shadow came back for the Paladins.

“Alright Pidge. We’ve got everyone. Time to flood the city!”

Pidge issued the command, and suddenly the gates of the city opened up, letting gas in.

They watched silently as the first shuttles began to leave, and they readied their weapons. They shot them down, one by one. Allura could see the shuttle they rode in on.

“I’d bet you my left ear that’s Ulya’s crew.”

Allura shot the shuttle from the air, and breathed out. “Good riddance.”

Lance sighed. “There’s probably someone manning Ulya’s ship from orbit and awaiting their return.”

“I’d thought about that, too.” Said allura. “I’ll handle it.”

“You don’t have to handle it alone.” Said Shiro.

“Yeah, Allura, you’re not the only one who trusted Ulya. We all wanted to trust her. Let me handle it.” Lance offered.

“Nope, already on it.” said Keith as he approached the ship.

“Dammit, Keith will you let one of us do something cool for once?” snarked Lance.

Allura sighed, letting a deep breath out. “I know it’s not my fault. I just wanted to fix things.”

Krolia stepped into the cockpit of the blue lion, and approached Allura. “It’s okay. Everyone is here to help you. Remember when you found out about Lance and you wondered why he kept it all bottled inside?”

Allura nodded.

“People tend to try to burden themselves with so much all the time. You should know that you can lean on your team for help, and they’ll do the same when they need it. Lead by example, and they will follow.”

Allura smiled. “I’m very lucky Keith has a mom that’s so wise.”

“Wise is a word for someone who’s learned the hard way how the universe works.”

 Allura nodded.

"You're right." Allura waited with Krolia for some time, and not before long everyone got a confirmation from Keith that the ship was cleared.

* * *

Later, the Paladins searched the city once the gas had been cleared out. Everyone who hadn’t evacuated - the gamblers at the arena, the bidders at the brothels, and the exchangers at the main depot along with all the guards were dead. It was a grim scene, but one that needed to play out.

Lance went to the brothel looking for his clothes, and found them. He sighed, picking them up and leaving the building behind. He shivered as he passed by room after room with cushions and beds similar to the one he’d been in. He didn’t want to think about what would have happened had he not escaped.

The others gathered weapons, spare parts, and other necessary items before heading back to the ship.

Allura took to flying the ship, her hands figuring out the ship as the people found their lodgings in the large vessel.

* * *

 

Elsewhere, Lance held himself in his arms and sighed deeply near the large window which he had grown fond of.

“You okay Lance?” Shiro’s voice called him out of his quiet reflection. He stood leaning against the threshold.

Lance nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay. Today was a lot.”

“You should get to bed if you're tired.”

“Yeah...”

“Is something bugging you?”

“I should be asking you if you’re okay.”

Shiro smiled. “Lance, I’m fine.”

“They made you kill people.”

Shiro frowned. “It wasn’t my first time in an arena, Lance.”

“I know. I just - I hate that they keep doing this to you. You’re so kind and understanding, and yet-” Lance sighed. “Just because you’d done it before doesn’t mean that it won’t affect you. Out of all of us, you’re probably the most… the most hurt, and I don’t even know how to help you.”

Shiro stepped closer to Lance and touched his face, lifting it to him. “I’m not gonna lie, this is going to stay with me forever. But if I have you and Keith, then I think I’ll be okay.”

“Me and Keith?”

“You’re both… very important to me.” Shiro blushed. “When I saw you on the screen in the Arena… it made me crazy.”

Lance looked away, his eyes lidded sadly. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. It was an awful situation, but we got out of it.”

Lance nodded.

“Lance… Is it okay if I kiss you?”

Lance looked back up to Shiro. “Yes.” He said, tears in his eyes. Shiro leaned forward, kissing him gently before resting his forehead against Lance’s. “ _We’re okay_. That’s what’s important. You’re safe now. I’m safe now.”

Lance nodded. “Can… Can I have another kiss?” Lance asked.

Shiro smiled, and kissed Lance again. Lance’s lips were sweet and soft, and Shiro wanted nothing but to get drunk in his kiss, but he didn’t want to take advantage of Lance in a saddened state. Shiro parted from Lance, and when he saw Lance’s blushed face, Shiro’s heart skipped a beat. “Lance, I have to tell you something.”

“No, don’t tell me anything.” Lance said, pushing his lips to Shiro again, and Shiro wasn’t about to stop him. “Can we just… be together?” Lance asked when their lips parted again.

“Lance…”

“I don’t want to be with anyone else. I know before I just needed to be wanted but _right now_ I just want to be with you… and…”

“Lance, I-”

“...and Keith.”

Shiro blinked. “What about Keith?”

“I like him. I want to be with him, too. The same way I want to be with you, I want to be with Keith.”

Lance waited in anxious silence for Shiro’s reaction. He expected anger or frustration. Maybe he’d break up with him entirely, but Lance knew he needed to say it.

Shiro breathed in. Lance was brave enough to admit his feelings regarding Keith, maybe it was time for Shiro to come clean about it, too.

“I like him, too,” Shiro finally admitted. “I was going to talk to you about it eventually, but I hadn’t even wanted to acknowledge it to myself yet.”

Lance and Shiro were silent in each others arms for a moment, looking at each other with equal bewilderment.

“What… what are we going to do about it?” Lance asked cautiously.

Shiro breathed in, silently asking for Kuron’s opinion to no avail. His head was blank.

“We… shouldn’t do anything at least for now. We’re still trying to figure out what we want and Keith- I don’t want to confuse or hurt him.”

“You’re probably right…” Lance said, his eyes looking to the side.

Shiro moved Lance’s face back to look at him. “I’m not confused about my feelings for you, though.”

Lance smiled. “Me too… for you.”

They kissed again, this time Lance ended the kiss first. “I should go to bed,” he whispered.

“I can walk you to your room.” Shiro offered.

Lance nodded, and smiled when Shiro held out his hand for him to take. Lance intertwined his fingers with Shiro’s, and they made their way through the halls to an elevator. Lance smiled to himself. He felt completely safe with Shiro - unlike how he felt with Kuron. When he was with Kuron, every moment felt like he could slip up or do something wrong. Now, he felt more at ease. He didn’t feel frantic or worried. He could just be calm. The elevator door opened, and they stepped inside.

Shiro noticed Lance’s smile, and smiled in return. “What are you smiling about,” he asked curiously.

“You’re just… awesome. I never got to hold hands with Kuron.” Lance lowered his head almost submissively, and Shiro half-frowned.

“You deserve to have your hand held, and…” Shiro lifted Lance’s hand to his mouth and kissed it gently, and when he looked up he could see Lance’s face go red.

“You- that’s so cute. Oh my god stop it.” Lance said, feeling his entire body heat up because holy shit _Takashi Shirogane_ just _kissed_ his hand.

“Sorry, I should have asked first.” Shiro said, lowering Lance’s hand.

Lance blinked, breathing in. “It’s fine, I just- I wasn’t expecting-”

“For someone who’s trying to teach you the importance of boundaries, I’m doing a shitty job. I’ll ask next time.” Shiro said.

“I mean you’re my boyfriend so like, why would-” Lance shut his mouth as soon as he heard his words. “I mean, you’re not- but-”

“I’m not?”

“Well, I don’t think we really… talked about it…?”

Shiro nodded to himself. “Yeah, we didn’t really talk about it… I just assumed-”

“Are… Do you even want to be my boyfriend?”

Shiro smiled. “If you’ll have me.”

“Then you can kiss my hand whenever you want.”

Shiro breathed a tiny sigh through his nose. “Just because two people are together, doesn’t give the other person permission to do whatever they want to the other whenever they want.”

“I know, but what I’m trying to say is I liked it. I thought it was cute.”

“I’ll still ask next time.” Shiro said. Lance nodded.

The two of them were silent for a moment, until Shiro laughed. “We haven’t pressed the button.”

Lance tilted his head, unsure of what Shiro meant. “What?”

Shiro leaned closer to Lance, and Lance prepared himself for a kiss, but was surprised when Shiro’s lips never met his. He opened his eyes to see Shiro pressing the elevator button to the top floor of the ship.

Shiro chuckled. “The button to select a floor… we never pushed it.”

“Oh.” Lance said, sheepishly as Shiro backed away.

“Did you _want_ a kiss?” Shiro asked, a cheeky grin on his face.

“No.” Lance said, pouting.

Shiro smiled, Lance was just too damn cute. “Hmm… what about if I want to kiss you now?”

Lance looked at Shiro through the corner of his eye. “So needy,” he joked, but leaned in. Shiro laughed through the kiss, and Lance smiled and blushed. “Shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything,” Shiro defended.

Their lips hovered close together, and they breathed in each other’s space. Shiro found himself plunged into the deep blue of Lance’s eyes.

“You’re so beautiful,” He whispered.

“I know.” Lance boasted, biting his lip. “So are you.”

Shiro watched Lance bite his lip and fixated his eyes on Lance’s mouth. He breathed in, keeping himself centered as the elevator doors opened to the floor. He backed away from Lance and held the door, letting Lance exit the elevator before stepping out himself.

It was Lance’s turn to hold out his hand, and Shiro grasped it, letting Lance lead the way to his room. They passed Keith’s room, and arrived at the door to Lance’s.

“This is me.” Lance said, quietly as he gestured to the door.

Shiro nodded. “My room is the next one over… if you need anything.”

Lance’s brow perked, and he smirked. “Is that an invitation?”

Shiro blushed red. “Hah… ah…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yes,” Shiro declared quietly.

Lance went red. “Wh- Wait are you for real?”

Shiro couldn’t help but panic. “Uh- yeah. Maybe another time, though.”

Lance leaned back. “Oh, yeah. I mean, today was wild.”

“Y-yeah. Today was- I mean not that I don’t want to, it’s just right now I’m-”

“We should get some rest.” Lance cut Shiro off.

“I just don’t want you to be-”

“Confused. I know.” Lance said, finishing Shiro’s sentence.

Shiro nodded.

“Another time then?” Lance said with a smirk.

“Yeah” Shiro huffed out, trying to keep calm. “Another time.”

“Goodnight, Shiro.” Lance opened the door with one hand, and let go of Shiro’s palm with the other.

“Goodnight, Lance.”

The door closed, and Shiro was left outside in the hallway.

 _“And you’re just going to NOT fuck him?”_ Kuron’s voice startled Shiro.

 _“Where the hell have you been?”_ Shiro thought.

_“I’ll explain later. Right now, you’re letting your own guilt about Lance cloud your judgement. Just have some fun already!”_

_“But he’s not-”_

_“Did you see him accept your refusal or are you blind? He’s ready.”_

Shiro took a deep breath.

* * *

Lance couldn’t help but blush every time he heard his name coming out of Shiro’s mouth. It was like a gift each time, because it was always spoken sweetly. Lance leaned against his door and covered his mouth. He was smiling like an idiot, and he couldn’t stop himself.

Shiro was his boyfriend - for real. He’d said it, and it was the real Shiro. Lance was about to sit down on his bed when he heard a knock on his door. Maybe Shiro had forgotten something. He opened the door and crossed his arms.

“Shiro? Did you forget something?”

Shiro smiled. “It’s another time now.”

“Oh… _OH_.” Lance blushed. “Uhm- Should I- Should I go to your room or- do you want to co- come in?”

“May I come in? But only if you want me to.”

“Oh I want you. TO. T-To come in. I want you _to come in_.” Lance stumbled through his words as he let Shiro into his room, and Shiro laughed through his nose as he stepped inside.

Lance shut the door for a second time that night, and whispered a prayer. _“Let this not be a dream. Please let this be real.”_

“What’s that?” Shiro asked.

Lance turned around. “Nothing.”

Shiro reached out to hold Lance’s face in his hand, and the sigh the boy let out was so relieved, so soft. Shiro leaned in and kissed him, letting his hand travel to the back of Lance’s head, holding him close. His new arm had it’s faults, but at least he could still use it to hold Lance.

Lance slid his arms around Shiro’s neck, holding on to him as if it was the last thing he’d ever do.

Their mouths moved together in sync, and something in Shiro stirred. It felt so right, so natural, like they had kissed many times before and his body was reacting to Lance by muscle memory alone. They moved closer to the bed, and Lance smoothed his hand over Shiro’s chest, rubbing his fingers against his nipple over his shirt, making him gasp.

“Lance…” Shiro whispered.

Lance smiled. “Did you like that?”

Shiro nodded, and Lance slipped his fingers underneath the fabric of Shiro’s shirt, and moved slowly up Shiro’s abdomen until it reached his chest.

Shiro grabbed the other side of his shirt and lifted it, taking it off to give Lance more room to play with. When he pulled the fabric over his head, he wasn’t ready for the warm wet feeling around his nipple. He looked down to see Lance licking him. He bit his lip and pet Lance, praising him. “You’re so precious, Lance.”

Hearing those words, Lance blushed and moved his mouth to the other side of Shiro’s chest, not neglecting his other nipple.

Shiro smiled. “That’s a good boy.” Shiro couldn’t help but notice the way Lance moved after hearing that.

“Do you like being told you’re a good boy?”

Lance’s face was red, and his tongue still out on Shiro’s chest. He nodded in response.

Shiro breathed out. “You’re such a good boy.”

Lance shivered at his words as they moved through him.

“Tell me what you want, Lance.”

Lance froze.

Shiro touched Lance’s face again, holding his chin up to look at him. In his eyes, Shiro could see someone who hadn’t ever been asked what he wanted in bed before. He sat on the bed with Lance, letting himself be more eye-to-eye with him.

“Be a good boy and tell me _exactly_ what you want.”

Lance’s breath hitched and his body shivered. “I… I want to…” Lance was red. “I want to ride you.”

Shiro’s heart raced and he smiled, already feeling his arousal. He got closer to Lance, running his hand down his chest down to his abdomen. “Okay.”

Lance bit his lip, watching Shiro’s hand travel down to his pants, and he closed his eyes for a second. “I want you to keep telling me I’m a good boy.” Lance whispered, almost too softly for Shiro to hear.

“You’re such a good boy. You’re everything I want.”

“Tell me I’m good. I want… I want you to tell me I’m good. And… I want to go down on you.”

Shiro blinked. “Y-yeah?”

Lance moved closer. “I want to make you feel good, and I want you to tell me how good I am.”

Shiro caressed Lance’s face with the back of his hand. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“I want to. I _really_ want to.”

Shiro smiled, and nodded. His hand was still at the waist of Lance’s pants, and he pulled away.

Shiro had to admit, he’d wanted Lance to go down on him for some time, but he didn’t imagine that Lance would want to - that he would actually volunteer himself to do that for him. He leaned back, watching as moved to kneel on the floor in front of Shiro. Lance unbuttoned Shiro’s pants, sliding his hand over Shiro’s boxers and caressed him over the cloth.

“Lance…” Shiro whispered as Lance pulled the band of his boxers down, freeing Shiro’s dick.

Lance paused. “I forgot… how big you are,” Lance whispered.

Shiro felt like he could melt, and his soul nearly left his body when Lance ran his tongue on the underside of his dick and slid his hand up Shiro’s thigh.

“Ah… That feels so nice.” Shiro said through a lazy smile.

Lance smiled, and circled his tongue over Shiro’s head, making him jolt.

“Oh shit.”  Shiro said. It’d been so long since he’d had any kind of sexual contact that he was surprised by how good that felt.

Lance chuckled to himself, and slid his lips around Shiro’s dick, pushing it against his cheek and popping it slowly out of the side of his mouth, letting Shiro feel the soft flesh of his face. Shiro moaned out softly, and Lance couldn’t help but feel proud.

“Does that feel good?” Lance asked.

“Yeah.” Shiro’s voice dragged out, and he gripped the sheets of his bed as he waited for more. Lance circled his tongue around Shiro’s tip again, making him moan out before taking Shiro into his mouth.

“Oh god.” Shiro mumbled.

Lance lowered his mouth, his eyes watering at the corners as he tried to get all of Shiro in.

Shiro reached his hand down to tangle his fingers in Lance’s brown hair. He breathed as he let Lance work. Everything was so warm and so wet, and the curve of his throat felt so nice. Shiro’s jaw went slack as he looked down to watch Lance.

Shiro moaned out. The boy at his lap knew what he was doing. “You’re so good… Look at you just taking my cock into your mouth… You’re doing so well.”

Lance’s throat convulsed around Shiro for a moment, and Shiro lost his words as he watched Lance - unable to look away and not wanting to. It was a beautiful sight. Lance’s face buried against Shiro and his cheeks hollowing out. He wasn’t sure he was going to be able to restrain himself.

Without saying a word, Shiro pulled Lance’s face back by his hair to look at him.

Lance moaned out and smiled, saliva trailing on his open mouth.

“Lube?”

Lance glanced to a nightstand, and Shiro reached over to open it.

“Jar.” Lance mumbled. Shiro pulled out a small jar of a blue liquid. Lance watched as Shiro opened it, and dipped his fingers into it.

Shiro liked the consistency, it was slippery and thin - not sticky. He also couldn’t help but notice the jar was half empty.

“What do you normally use this stuff for?”

Lance looked away wearing and embarrassed smile. He turned back to Shiro. “For when I think about you at night.”

Shiro smiled. “Of course you do. Get up here.”

Lance climbed onto the bed, and Shiro placed his left hand on his abdomen to make him lay back. Lance unbuttoned his pants and pulled them down, letting Shiro grab them and pull them all the way off before throwing them off the bed.

Lance laughed at the pace Shiro moved, like he was excited.

Shiro smiled. “What is it?”

“I just- I think you’re cute.”

Shiro raised his eyebrow as he lined his right hand finger up against Lance’s hole. “Cute, huh?” Shiro pressed his finger against Lance, and Lance gasped.

“Relax…”

Lance relaxed, letting Shiro push his finger inside of him, and once he was inside, Shiro curled his finger up inside Lance.

“Oh my god.” Lance said, throwing his head back.

Once Lance was more relaxed, Shiro took to introducing a second finger inside Lance, which he took beautifully.

“You take my fingers in so nicely. Do you fuck yourself every night?”

Lance mewled, trying to thrust up into Shiro’s mouth and down onto Shiro’s fingers as he separated his fingers inside of Lance to stretch him.

“You like this, don’t you? Fucking yourself on my hand like this, you have no idea how incredibly hot you look.”

“More.” Lance whispered.

“Your ass is gonna feel so good on my cock.” Shiro growled, and Lance twitched at the thought.

“Let me- Let me ride you _._ ” Lance barely loud enough for Shiro to hear.

Shiro kept his fingers inside of Lance, twisting them inside Lance as he pumped his hand faster.

“What was that?” Shiro asked, teasing.

Lance huffed, letting Shiro finger him a little longer until he’d had enough. “I want you inside me _please_.” Lance begged. “I want to ride you.”

“You ask so nicely.” Shiro said softly.

Lance moaned as Shiro pulled his fingers out.

“Looks like you’re ready.” Shiro moved back on the bed so that his back was against the wall. “Come here, sharpshooter.”

Lance blushed as he moved forward on the bed, crawling over to Shiro. He straddled him. “The first time you called me sharpshooter casually out in the field I just… I really went to town on myself imagining you say that to me again.” Lance confessed.

Shiro curled his hands behind Lance’s thighs, pulling him closer. “You’re my perfect sharpshooter.”

Lance nearly melted, and he wrapped one arm around the back of Shiro’s neck and used the other to reach beneath him and grasp Shiro’s dick to steady it against his entrance.

“You’re doing so well, Lance.” Shiro whispered.

Lance bit his lip and kept his eyes on Shiro as he lowered himself slowly onto Shiro, guiding him inside as the tip opened him up, the slick from the lube helping him go in easily.

“Fuck.” Shiro cursed, gripping onto Lance’s thighs as he felt the warmth encompass his hard dick. “You feel so good, Lance.”

Lance’s face was flush red as he bottomed out against Shiro’s hips.

Lance gasped, remembering to breathe. “Fuck you’re so big.”

“Take your time. You’re doing great.”

Lance began to move his hips. “Shiro…” Lance whispered Shiro’s name as he slid himself up and down slowly on Shiro’s dick.

“You like to make me feel good, don’t you?” Shiro’s low voice was music to Lance’s ears.

“You make me feel so good, Lance. You’re such a good boy.”

Lance moaned out as he picked up his pace, and Shiro breathed in through his teeth as he felt Lance’s hole slide up and down on him.

“God… you feel so fucking nice. You ride my cock so well.”

“Ye-yeah?” Lance asked, hoping Shiro would repeat what he’d said.

“Yeah. You’re such a good boy riding me like this.”

“C- can I call you daddy?” Lance whined.

Shiro’s breath hitched. He loved the idea of letting Lance call him daddy, but he knew it was something he had tried with Kuron. Shiro’s mind threatened to wander off, but Lance spoke up again.

“Please.”

Shiro nodded, sliding his right hand on Lance’s hip and the other around his back, bringing him in close as Shiro thrust up into Lance, fucking him from beneath. Lance moaned out, and Shiro whispered, “You’re safe with me, Lance. Go ahead.”

“Daddy…” Lance whispered out.

“Louder.”

“D-Daddy… Unng!” Lance’s movement was unnecessary as Shiro gripped his hip and bounced Lance on his lap. “...Daddy it feels so good! Your cock feels so good inside me!”

“You’re such a good boy Lance.. So fuckin’ good…” Shiro repeated his words, gripping harder onto Lance’s hips.

“Fuck me, daddy. Just like that- ah- Ung!” Lance’s moans filled the room, and Shiro wanted more.

“Let me fuck you. Let me fuck you _good_.” Shiro waited for Lance’s answer.

He nodded. “Fuck me hard, daddy.”

He pushed Lance back and onto the bed, his shoulders pressed against the sheets as Shiro pulled his hips up and thrusted forward into Lance.

Lance’s dick dripped with precum against his stomach - Shiro was thrusting against his prostate in the most perfect way and Lance was a mess because of it.

“You make me crazy.” Shiro whispered. “You’re so fucking hot. Fuck.”

“H-Harder…” Lance mumbled.

Shiro grunted, and thrusted harder, faster, rougher. “You take me so well, Lance.”

Lance moaned over and over again at each thrust, letting his voice carry without a care in the world.

“Careful, Lance. Keith might hear you.” Shiro teased.

Lance moaned out again, louder.

“Oh you want him to hear you, don’t you?” Shiro said, running his left hand up Lance’s abdomen to his nipple and pinching it softly, making Lance moan even louder.

“You want Keith to hear us, maybe he’s already jerking off to your slutty moans right now.” Shiro pinched harder, and Lance’s voice nearly became a scream.

“Yes!” Lance managed to moan out.

“Yes what?”

“I want him to hear me!” Lance admitted.

“Good.” Shiro pulled Lance up and off the bed, holding him up and carrying him off the bed and across the room. He set Lance down on his feet and pulled out briefly.

“Turn around. Face the wall.” Shiro commanded. Lance did as he was told.

“That’s Keith’s room, right?” Shiro asked.

“Yeah.” Lance moaned out. Shiro lowered himself, trying to find Lance’s hole again. Lance reached behind him and spread himself so that Shiro could see.

“Oh, that’s fucking beautiful.” Shiro said loudly. “You’re ass is gorgeous, and you’re so helpful. Such a good boy.” Shiro shoved himself back into Lance easily, pushing him against the wall as he did.

“Tell me who’s dick is inside you.”

“D-daddy’s.”

“That’s right. And what do you want daddy to do?”

“Fuck me hard.”

“Daddy’s gonna fuck you hard. And you know what you’re gonna do?”

“Mh-mh.”

“You’re gonna moan into that wall so Keith can hear me fucking you.” Shiro thrust forward into Lance, getting a yelp from him. “I want Keith to know how good I fuck you. I want him to hear it. You got that?”

“Y-yes.” Lance groaned out, feeling Shiro pull back slowly as he prepared to thrust back into him.

“Yes what?”

“Yes daddy!”

“That’s a good boy.” Shiro thrust into him, and Lance moaned, his cheek pressed against the wall as Shiro went to town on him.

“Ah! Shiro! Yes! Daddy fuck me just like that! Ah!”

“You sound so nice, Keith’s gonna fucking love it.” Shiro whispered to Lance as he reached around Lance’s hips and wrapped his fingers around Lance’s dick that was flowing over with preum.

“You’ve been such a good boy, you deserve this.” Shiro stroked Lance with every thrust he gave, making it harder for Lance to stand.

“You’re doing so well, Lance. I want you to come.”

Lance whimpered, and Shiro grunted as he felt himself getting close.

“Cum for me. Cum for daddy.”

With that, Lance came, and he moaned out as he shivered. Shiro let him ride out his orgasm, and pulled out before bringing Lance back to the bed. He stood over him as he lay on his stomach, and Shiro finished himself off across Lance’s ass before joining him in bed and covering them both with covers.

“You did so good, Lance.” Shiro whispered, holding him close to his chest.

Lance hugged Shiro tightly, hiding his face in Shiro’s chest. Shiro watched Lance’s shoulders rise and fall.

“Lance? You okay?”

Lance turned to look at Shiro. His eyes were puffy and overflowing with tears.

“Lance, baby what’s wrong?”

Lance shook his head. “I’m just- I feel happy. We’re finally together, and I can make you feel good and you make me feel good and you stay after. You didn’t just leave.”

“Of course I didn’t leave you.”

“Kuron always left me alone… I didn’t really care until just now. Like, yeah I knew he manipulated me but I didn’t realize how much I wanted him to stay with me until you climbed into bed just now.” Lance sniffed, and Shiro wiped the tears off of Lance’s face. “It’s okay, I’m here.”

Lance breathed, calming down as Shiro intertwined his fingers with Lance’s.

“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”

Lance nodded.

“I love you.” Shiro whispered. “I know I said it earlier. I meant it.”

Lance smiled. “I love you too.”

They held each other, drifting off to sleep as they clung to the warmth the other gave off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to the shklance party boat I hope you are all enjoying your voyage. Our next destination is Keith Island, home of the "What the fuck did I just hear on the other side of my bedroom wall?????"
> 
> Hey y'all sorry again that this was late but this week was so wild.  
> I'll post again when I can.
> 
> Remember kids if you see something, say nothing and drink to forget.
> 
> I actually surprised myself with this chapter like I thought it was gonna be way shit but like I read it and was like hm. Okay. So anyway yeah hope you liked it.


	5. Voices Carry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hush, hush  
> Keep it down now  
> Voices Carry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it's Halloween. BUUUT I'm not "complete" with this chapter so I thought I'd give y'all like a teaser. This is more like Chapter 4 and a half lol. It's been kind of crazy but I wanted to give y'all something so... here.

Keith pat Hunk’s shoulders, and smiled at Pidge. “You guys did really well today. We couldn’t have gotten out without y’all.”  
Hunk and Pidge smiled.  
“Are you still high?” asked Pidge.  
“No, I mean it. I’m proud of you.” Keith said, crossing his arms grumpily.  
“Aw, Keith’s being sincere!” Hunk teased.  
“Okay, shut up. I’m going to bed.” Keith huffed.  
Hunk and Pidge laughed.  
“We love you, Keith!” Pidge and Hunk said as Keith walked off.  
“Yeah, whatever... You too.” Keith pushed a button and waited for the elevator. Their rooms were on the top floor of the ship, separate from the liberated prisoners of Ghi. The elevator came and he got in, the doors shut and he breathed out as he leaned against the back of the elevator wall. He smiled, thinking about how far he’d come. He had friends who regularly told him they loved him, he had a mom who hugged him, a wolf that depended on him, and…. He didn’t have Lance or Shiro in the way he wanted, but he was glad to have them in his life.  
The elevator dinged as it reached the top floor, and just as the doors opened, and Keith made his way to his room, but stopped seeing the light in Lance’s room seep out from the seam of the doorframe.  
He stared at it, wondering if he should check on Lance. He was tempted, but considering his feelings for Lance he decided it was best to stay away. Lance probably wouldn’t try to jump his bones again, but Keith didn’t want to risk being caught in Lance’s bedroom this late.  
“He needs a friend, not a lover.” Keith mumbled Lance’s words to himself as he opened his door and went into his room.  
After he changed into his boxers, Keith sat down on his bed and sprawled out. He wondered if he was still coming down from his high or if it was all worn off by now. He closed his eyes and breathed in slowly. Breathing just felt like breathing - he was pretty sober now.  
He swallowed, but his throat felt dry. That day had been so wild. He’d spent most of it feeling great, but looking back on the events objectively put things into perspective. Shiro was forced into yet another arena to kill people, Lance was almost subjected to a publicized rape, and everyone had to fight today. Everyone had to kill. Not droids, not soldiers - people. Keith sighed. This was war, and he knew everyone was going to be more or less messed up once they got home. It was probably best not to think about it.  
He could hear Lance’s voice saying something through the wall, but it was mumbled.  
Keith smiled. He liked thinking about Lance, and Keith had to admit that seeing him today in a skimpy outfit was a gift.  
Lance’s voice continued.  
Wait, who is Lance talking to?  
Keith opened his eyes and sat up, pressing his ear to the wall. He could hear Shiro’s voice.  
What was Shiro doing in Lance’s room?  
Keith frowned. Maybe they were just talking. Keith moved away from the wall to sit on the edge of his bed. It was probably rude to eavesdrop on their conversation, even if he couldn’t tell what they were saying. He moved to the other side of the room and pulled out his blade. Maybe he’d sharpen it, or something.  
He could still hear Shiro’s muffled voice through the wall, although from where he sat it was faint and unintelligible.  
Keith cleaned his blade, hunched over it on a desk as his knee bounced anxiously. Luckily, he couldn’t hear anything anymore. He calmed down and focused on the weapon in front of him.  
Wait… why are they so quiet?  
The thought pestered Keith, and wouldn’t go away until he set down his blade and stepped back over to his bed that rested against the wall.  
He got closer, and pressed his ear against the surface. He could faintly hear Lance’s voice.  
Keith’s eyes went wide as he heard something like a moan. It was Shiro’s voice. Keith shook his head and backed away. There was no way he was listening to the two of them fuck.  
Keith crossed his arms as he paced the room. His thoughts running wild.

  
_Didn’t Lance say he was off sex? He said he wasn’t going to have sex with anyone for a while, right? Did I imagine that?_

Keith could hear Shiro and Lance talking again. Maybe he had imagined the moan. Maybe they were just talking like Keith originally thought. He sat back down on his bed, staring at the wall. He laid down, resting his head on his pillow as he watched the wall carefully.

  
_Today was stressful… Shiro and Lance especially had a rough time, they were probably just… talking things out. Yeah. **Talking.**_

Keith’s thoughts swirled, attempting to comfort him. He himself didn’t believe his own attempts at self-comfort. He could hear Lance saying something loudly, but from where he laid on his bed he couldn’t make out any words. It was probably better that way... but then the sounds became slightly repetitive. Keith frowned. That doesn’t sound like talking.  
Keith turned away from the wall, his arms crossed.  
He could hear Shiro’s low voice now, but again he couldn’t make any words out. Both of the voices quieted down for some time, and Keith sighed. Hopefully, whatever they were doing was over now.  
Keith closed his eyes. For a moment, it was quiet enough that Keith thought he’d be able to finally fall asleep. But the sound of a moan jolted him awake. He stared at the wall.

  
_They definitely weren’t just talking._

The blank wall in front of him was so taunting. He couldn’t see what they were doing, and the sounds coming through were like a blank canvas - letting him paint pictures of Shiro and Lance with his mind. There was another moan, and Keith scrambled across his bed to press his ear to the wall. He could hear Shiro’s voice, but his heart was beating so fast he couldn’t make out anything Shiro said. Keith calmed down, taking slow breaths.  
Lance’s muffled but whiny voice sent shock waves through Keith. What he would give to see what it was Shiro was doing to him to make him sound like that. For a moment he couldn’t hear anything, then Lance’s voice was audible again. He could hear bits of what he was saying.

  
_”...it feels so good! Your cock feels so good inside me!”_

Keith breathed out, his jaw going slack at the sound. Shiro was fucking Lance right now - it was actually happening. Keith backed away from the wall, but he could still hear it - Shiro’s rough voice and Lance moaning like a sex demon.  
Keith couldn’t believe it. They were fucking. _For real_. Keith wanted to be mad, but god did it sound so hot. Keith’s could feel his dick begin to harden, and with every sound Lance let out and every grunt from Shiro on the other side of the wall made his imagination go wild. How he wished he could see it. Keith sighed, rubbing himself over his boxers. There was a feeling of guilt in the pit of his stomach - he’d die of mortification if they ever knew he touched himself to the sound of them fucking - but it just _wasn’t fair_. He had wanted both of them individually, and now they were fucking in the next room and he wanted them _both_.  
Keith’s breath hitched as he heard Shiro’s voice.

  
_“You take me so well Lance.”_

Keith huffed, getting out of bed to get to his bag, searching frantically for his bottle of lube that he had gotten on one of his many travels. He got back on his bed and stood next to the wall, listening in as he squeezed a small puddle of the slick liquid onto his fingers and pulled his boxers down. Lance’s moans were so gorgeous. Keith shook his head as he wrapped his fingers around himself, stroking slowly at first. His left hand pressed against the wall while his right hand stroked his growing dick.  
Lance only got louder, and Keith bit his lip at the thought of Lance taking Shiro’s cock - _what did it look like? God, what did it **feel** like?_  
His senses heightened as Lance moaned even louder. Keith’s dick was fully hard in his hand as he let the sounds move through his body like a song.  
_“Yes!”_ Lance screamed.  
Keith covered his mouth, stifling a moan. There was a pause where Keith couldn’t hear much. Keith breathed, waiting for something - anything.  
Suddenly, Shiro’s voice was clearer, more defined, and louder.

  
_“Turn around. Face the wall.”_

Keith’s eyes shot open, disbelief raising in his chest. They had moved. They moved closer to Keith’s wall. They were right fucking there on the other side of the wall, inches away from him. He could hear Shiro’s voice speaking lowly, and it was almost clear enough to understand, but Keith didn’t have the capacity to try to decipher whispers when all he could think about was the fact that Shiro probably had Lance pressed up against the wall. Keith simply continued stroking himself, running his thumb over his tip.  
_“Oh, that’s fucking beautiful.”_ Shiro said loudly, and it was clear enough for Keith to hear.  
_“You’re ass is gorgeous, and you’re so helpful. Such a good boy.”_ Shiro’s voice stirred Keith, and Lance’s whimpers against the wall pushed him further into his desire. He wanted more, needed more. He pressed his forehead against the wall and reached for the bottle of lube again, this time readying his free hand quickly before sliding his hand underneath him, his finger pressing against his hole as he heard the new sound of Shiro thrusting against Lance. Keith bit his lip, keeping himself quiet so that he could keep listening in. It was so much. He pressed a finger into himself and sighed as he stroked himself. Lance moaned again, encouraging Keith to slide another finger inside. His legs shook as he moved his hand to Shiro’s pace, silently wishing his fingers were Shiro’s cock.  
_“Tell me who’s dick is inside you.”_ Shiro’s voice was commanding, something Keith had never had the pleasure of hearing. Keith almost said Shiro’s name aloud, but Lance answered, _“D-daddy’s.”_  
Keith bit his lip, wondering who was it that had the daddy kink. Lance? Shiro? **Both?** He whispered to himself. “Daddy…” The word felt strange coming out of his mouth, he’d never explored that kink, but he didn’t care.  
_“That’s right. And what do you want daddy to do?”_ Shiro growled.  
_“Fuck me hard,”_ Lance whined.  
“Oh please fuck him hard…” Keith uttered under his breath. “Fuck him hard…” Keith repeated the words like a mantra. He wanted to hear Lance absolutely lose it, and he needed to hear the sound of Shiro’s hips slapping against Lance’s ass. He needed it like he’d never needed anything else in his life. He pressed another finger into himself as Shiro spoke again.

_“Daddy’s gonna fuck you hard. And you know what you’re gonna do?”_

_“Mh-mh.”_

_“You’re gonna moan into that wall so Keith can hear me fucking you.”_  
Lance yelped.  
Keith’s breath hitched. Shiro **wanted** him to hear this. The sounds of Shiro’s thrusts were messy, harsh, and fast. Keith let out tiny moans, hoping they couldn’t hear him as he fucked himself on his fingers and pumped his hand on his dick.

  
_“I want Keith to know how good I fuck you. I want him to hear it. You got that?”_

  
The confirmation that Shiro wanted him to hear them was so much. Keith’s breaths were heavy and fast as he stroked himself and curled his fingers inside himself to hit him just right. Everything was so much and yet not enough. Not even close to being enough. He wanted more. He wanted to feel Shiro drag along his insides. He wanted Lance’s ass around his dick. He wanted their hot bodies around him - underneath and above and their mouths against his.  
It took everything in Keith not to make a sound. He couldn’t even tell what they were saying anymore, he didn’t care. Keith bit his lip and closed his eyes. He pictured them in his head - Lance pressed up against the wall while Shiro railed him. Keith was so close.  
_“Ah! Shiro! Yes, daddy fuck me just like that! Ah!”_ Lance screamed so needily, so wrecked, so pleased.  
Keith whimpered, and he prayed that Lance’s moans were louder so that they wouldn’t hear him. Shiro’s voice was so low, Keith couldn’t understand what he was saying until he growled, _“Cum for me. Cum for daddy.”_  
Lance moaned out so clearly, it sounded like he was in the room with Keith. Keith bit his lip and pressed his finger against prostate, and a whimper escaped him as he came - his body hot and his muscles tensing as he let everything go. His muscles tensed and he closed his eyes as he stroked out his cum.  
Lance quieted down, and Keith guessed he came too. Not long after he head Shiro grunt, and Keith assumed he was done, too.  
Keith breathed out shakily as he pulled his fingers out of himself. He looked down at his state - he was such a mess. His boxers were around his knees and there was cum on his, well, everything. He sighed, knowing now he’d have to clean up.  
He crawled out of bed, waddling around as he looked for anything that resembled a towel.  
As circulation returned to his brain, his thoughts began to spin. Had he just heard what he thought he’d heard?

_hat was real…_

He thought to himself. He found a towel and wiped himself down before pulling his boxers back up. He had to wipe some of his cum off the wall, it had really been too long since he’d touched himself like that and it showed. As he wiped the towel across the surface, he could hear Shiro and Lance talking lowly. Keith sighed.

  
_Shiro probably wanted me to hear them fucking so I know Lance is his… not mine._

  
It was the only logical conclusion Keith could come up with. Shiro was the jealous type, right? And he had caught Lance and Keith together in the supply closet. It only made sense that Shiro would make sure Keith knew Lance was so thoroughly claimed.  
Keith bit his lip as he thought it over. Was it really like Shiro to dangle Lance in front of him like that? Keith slumped in his bed. Whatever the case, he hoped they wouldn’t ask him about it. Even if they did, he could probably lie and tell them he didn’t hear anything.  
He closed his eyes, trying not to think about the fact that Lance told him he wasn’t going to have sex for a while, and now suddenly he’s calling Shiro daddy and moaning like a porn star. He failed to keep his mind clear. It was frustrating, and Keith couldn’t help but wonder what changed since their last discussion. Maybe the stress of today was too much for Lance, but Shiro would know better than to take advantage of Lance’s _stress_ , right?

  
Or maybe Shiro needed to release stress of his own.

Keith grunted, pulling a pillow over his head as if he could block out the sound of his own thoughts. Eventually the curiosity would kill him, but he decided Shiro would probably explain in time. He breathed out, accepting that Lance was the gatekeeper of his own sexuality. “They’re together now.” Keith said out loud. “It’s fine. I’m fine.” Keith’s own words sounded and felt like lies, but he couldn’t dwell too long on the subject. He’d rather not think about it.  
Keith smiled to himself, remembering hearing Lance’s voice scream _“daddy.”_

“Shiro really took to being called the Space Dad, huh?” Keith mumbled with a smile.

His mind drifted to the compliments Shiro gave Lance. They were perfect little bits of praise that Keith knew Lance needed, and he was happy for Lance, but his chest still ached. Shiro was able to say so freely what he wanted towards Lance. Shiro didn't have that fear of intimacy like Keith had. Sure, Keith knew he was getting better - and maybe he would get bolder, too. But Shiro beat him to it. On top of that, Keith wanted Shiro’s praise, too. He _craved_ it. He'd always wanted Shiro's attention, if he was honest with himself, and for the most part he always got it - to a point. 

He breathed out slowly, and suddenly there was a flash of blue light and a weight on his bed. Keith poked his head out from underneath his pillow and saw his wolf making turns on the bed as she readied to lay down. Keith chuckled, relieved that it was just his pet, and reached out to pet her before laying back down. Having her around helped, but he couldn’t remove the lingering feeling of loneliness. He tossed and turned for most of the night, but eventually went to sleep, silently hoping that when he woke up, he'd realize that this was maybe all a dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll update the rest in a week. Love y'all!  
> ***The inspiration for the rest of the Chapter that I will be posting next week came from Til Tuesday's song "Voices Carry" so if y'all want to find it and listen to that it's a really good song***


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